Wwm H H iffi 











Class. 
Book. 



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GopyrigM .. 



COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT, 




THE "CALIFORNIANS" LEAVING HOME 
July 15, 1902 



>{ "Califcrnian 
Hireling the $lobe 



BY 

HENRY FULLER 



Illustrated From Photographs 




Nazarene Publishing Company 

Lob Aksilis, (.'iunnsn. 
1904 



LIBRARY of CONGRESS 
Two Copies Received 

MAY 18 1904 
Copyright Entry 

CLASSJ IX, XXcI No. 

° 60PY B 



COPYRIGHT, 1904 



Henry Fuller 



• • • 

• • • 



GfH-W 



DEDICATED 

TO 

My Only ( Twin ) Sister 

MRS N". B. WEAVER, 

PERU, CLINTON COUNTY, NEW YORK 

IN Ml.MOKV OF 

CHILDHOOD DAYM. 



... CONTEISTTS ... 

CHAPTER I. 

A TALE SIX THOUSAND MILES LONG. 

An idea outgrowing- the bean that Jack planted — 500 
miles up the California Coast — Looking out of the Golden 
Gate— Over theSierra Nevadas — Through Utah— Meander- 
ing across many States— Memories of childhood — Sailing 
down the Hudson — New York — Coney Island — Across the 
Atlantic — Ireland — In "bonnie" Scotland — Loch Lomond 
— Loch Katrine — The Trossacks — Through Rob Roy's 
countr3 r — Where poets grow — Edinburgh— Love blossom- 
ing in Melrose Abbey. 

CHAPTER II. 

LONDON, PARIS AND GERMANY. 

Car window observations in England — Manchester — 
Liverpool — London — Excitement over money lost — Shah 
of Persia — Spurgeon's Tabernacle — City Temple— Ken- 
sington Museum — Fireworks at Sydenham — British Mu- 
seum — Big Ben — Houses of Parliament — London Tower — 
John Wesley's Grave — Across the English Channel — "La 
Belle" France — Dieppe — Normandy — Paris — Eiffel Tower 
— Notre Dame Cathedral — Versailles — On wrong train — 
Brussels — Rotterdam — Dusseldorf — Great German Expo- 
sition — Glimpses of German life — Cologne — Cologne Cath- 
edral. 



v. 



CHAPTER III. 

FROM MOSCOW TO MII,AN. 

Berlin — Arranging- passports — In Poland Russia — Medi- 
tating in Warsaw — Darwin's theory disproved — Russian 
Peasant life — Moscow — Forced to abandon a Russian 
train at 1 o'clock at night — Second act of meditation in 
Warsaw — At the German frontier — Breslau — Over the 
Continental divide of Europe— Budapest— No old people 
in heaven — Vienna — Sweeter than angel's food — Salzburg- 
Mayence — Sailing down the Rhine — Castles and romance 
— Another glimpse at German life— Eucerne — Sunrise 
and sunset in the Alps — Climbing St. Gothard's Pass — 
Through the Tunnel — Northern Italy — Milan and its 
Cathedral. 

CHAPTER IV. 

PROM ROME TO SMYRNA. 

Genoa — Rome "the Eternal City" — The largest church 
in the world, St. Peters — Mamertine prison — Ossian Way — 
Temple of Hercules — St. Paul's Cathedral — Three Foun- 
tains — In the Catacombs — Appian Way--Arch of Titus — 
Coliseum — Roman Forum — Palatine Hill — Naples — Pom- 
peii — Climbing Mount Vesuvius — Standing on the rim 
of it's Crater— Southern Italy— Brindisi — Sailing on 
the Adriatic — A Supernatural vision — In Greece — Old 
Corinth — A stairway higher than the stars — Athens — The 
Acropolis — Mars Hill — Piraaus — On the ^Egean Sea — 
Chios — S myrna. 

CHAPTER V. 

EPHESUS, DAMASCUS AND PALESTINE. 

Ephesus — Isle of Patmos — Island of Cyprus — Island of 
Rhodes — Meresina the Seaport of Tarsus — Tripoli — Beir- 
rout — Caifa— Joppa — Scared by giants away from "the 
Promised Eand — Under quarantine in Beirout harbor — 



VI. 



Across the Lebanon Mountains where the cedars grew — 
Plains of Beeka— Wonders of Baalbec — Over the Anti- 
Lebanon mountains — Damascus "the oldest city in the 
world" — River Abana — Straight street — Houses of Ana- 
nias and Naaman — Camping to Jerusalem— Near Mount 
Hermon— Ca^sarea Philippi— Sources of the Jordan— Vil- 
lage of Dan — Sea of Merom — Juaneh — Safed— Fishing in 
the Sea of Galilee — Plain of Gennesaret. 

CHAPTER VI. 

TRAVELING IN PALESTINE. 

Safed — Rocks and curses hurled at us in an Arab village 
— Plain of El Buttauf — Armed Turkish soldiers placing us 
underquarantine — Release — Nazareth Women quarreling at 
night for water — Plain of Esdraelon — River Kishon — Mount 
Carmel — Jenin — Nablous — Jacob's Well — Climbing Mount 
Gerizim — A Samaritan Synagogue — Shiloh — Bethel — Part- 
ing place of Abraham and Lot — Mount Scopus — Jerusalem — 
Mosque of Omar — Church of Holy Sepulchre — New Calvary — 
Garden of Gethsemane — Mount Olivet — Bethany — Jericho — 
Mount of Temptation — Elisha's Spring- Dead Sea — River 
Jordan — Rachel's Tomb — Bethlehem — Church of Nativity — 
Solomon's Pools — Tombs of the Judges— Mizpeh — Gibeon. 

CHAPTER VII. 

EIGHT HUNDRED MILES UP THE NILE. 

Leaving Jerusalem — On a Turkish railway — Joppa — 
Watching for a steamer — Oldest seaport in the world — Em- 
barking — Jonah and the whale— Port Said — Alexadria — In 
quarantine three days — Release — Delta of the Nile — Cairo — 
Heliopolis — Land of Goshen — Racing on a bridge — Jacob's 
Well — Bedrechein — Memphis — Annual overflow of the Nile 
— Oldest pyramid in the world — 30,000,000 Egyptians buried 
in one cemetery — A desert ride — Serapheum — Where Sacred 
bulls were buried — the Sphinx — Cheops — On top of the 
largest pyramid in the world — By rail to upper Egypt — 

vii. 



Euxor— Temple of Karnak— Tombs of Pharoahs— Temple 
of Medinet— Haboo— Colossi of Memnon— Temple of Luxor 
— Ancient Thebes— Assouan — In Nubia — Temple of Philae 
— On the Libyan desert — Illumination of Assouan. 

CHAPTER VIII. 

EGYPT AND INDIA. 

Opening of the largest dam in the world, at Assouan — 
Obelisk quarry — Assouan to Cario — Cairo Museum — Mum- 
mied Pharoahs of Moses' time — Ishmalia — Port Said — 
Booking on the steamship Arabia to India — Sailing through 
Suez Canal— Suez — Crossing-place of the Israelites in the 
Red Sea — Mt. Sinai — Aden — Arabian Sea — Southern Cross 
— Bombay — Towers of Silence on Malabar Hill— Glimpses 
of India from a railway train — Tundla Junction — Delhi 
Durbar — Great elephant parade — Amritsar — Weaving rugs 
— Golden temple of the Sikhs — Burning Hindoo body — New 
Years in Delhi — Art Exhibition — Fireworks — Delhi public 
library — Chandni Cbonk — An Eurasians clever dodge — 
Eucknow — North India Methodist Episcopal Conference. 

CHAPTER IX. 

INDIA CHINA AND JAPAN. 

Agra — Taj Mahal — Agra Fort — Ahmednager — Bubonic 
plague — Meditation — Dharangaon — Across India — Howrah 
— Calcutta — An idea — Crossing the Ganges — Siliguri Junc- 
tion — A toy train — Climbing the Himalayas — Gnoom — 
Darjeeling — Hiring a dandy — Trip to Tiger Hill — The Tall- 
est mountains in the world — Eooking towards Thibet — Re- 
turn to Calcutta — Booking to Hong Kong — On the Hugli — 
Bay of Bengal — Andaman Islands — Penang — Malacca 
Straits — Singapore — China Sea — Hong Kong — Shanghai — 
Nagasaki — Inland Sea — Kobe — Osaka — Yokohama — Tokio — 
Chickens with tails twelve feet long — Shogun Temples — 
Empress of India — Pacific Ocean — Victoria — Vancouver — 
Sumas — Uncle Sam's custom house — Home. 



Vlll. 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 

PAGE NO 

Frontispiece — The "Calif ornians" Leaving Home. 
Bullhead Fountain of Marble, at Ephesus . . .10 
River Abana, Damascus ...... 16 

July 15th, 1902 

Street Scene in Damascus . . . . . . 22 

Donke3 T Loaded With Weeds for Fuel near Damascus 26 ' 
Street Scene in London . . . . . . .32 

Old Site of Memphis (during Nile overflow) . . 36 

Wesley's Grave, Cit} r Roads Chapel, London . .40 
Oldest Pyramid in Fgypt, near Memphis . . . 46 v 

The Nile at Assouan December 10th, 1902 . . .56' 
Carriage in Moscow ....... 68 

One Source of River Jordan at Caesarea Philippi. . 78 

On the Rhine, Germany 88 

Fallen Statue of Rameses II, Memphis . . .94 

Rebuilding Ruins, Karnak, Egypt .... 102 

Arch of Titus, Rome 108 

Street in Pompeii. Chariot Ruts from Four to Five 

inches in Depth. ....... 114 

Parthenon, Athens 130 

Camel Caravan Loaded with Cotton .... 138 

Isle of Patmos 142 

Temple of Jupiter, Baalbec 154 

Camping from Damascus ....... 160 

Interior of Jewish Home (inner court) Damascus . 164 
Treading Corn with Oxen, Jordan Valley, Palestine . 168 



IX. 



PAGE NO. 

Plain of Gennesaret, Sea of Galilee .... 176 
Fountain of the Virgin in Nazareth .... 184 
Donkey and Ox Plowing, just outside walls of Jeru- 
salem 200 

Off for Gibeon from Jerusalem 210 

Natives Going to Market, Memphis .... 230 

Sphinx and Cheops 236 

Crossing the Nile at Ancient Thebes . . . 242 

Temple Ruins at Ancient Thebes 246 

Temple of Phila?, Nubia 250 

Assouan Dam (largest in the world) .... 254 
Duke and Duchess of Connaught and Khedive of 

Egypt 256 

Vultures Awaiting Parsee Funeral, Malabar Hill, 

Bombay 272 

State Fntry of Durbar, Delhi, December 29th, 1902 . 278 

Taj Mahal, Agra, India 294 

Native Carts Iyoaded with Cotton, Dharangaon, India. 300 

Darjeeling, in the lofty Himalayas .... 304 

Natives Stripping for Plague Inspection, Calcutta. 312 

Ox-cart, Yokahama 316 

Taking a Jinrickisha Ride, Penang ... . . 322 



PREFACE 



This story of Circling the Globe was written (on the 
way) in railway trains, at hotels and bungalows, on steam- 
ships, in out-of-the-wa3 r places, and under many varying 
circumstances, in a series of letters (101) and published 
in the "Redland's (Cal.) Daily Review." Almost in the 
shadow of the Adirondacks, in my native State, in the 
fall of 1903, at the home of nvy nephew, S. S. Allen, Esq., 
as the Autumn leaves were putting" on their bright colors, 
then twirling downward through the air, into the lap of 
mother earth, never to rise again, as each mountain top 
was gathering its mantle of white from the passing clouds, 
as many birds were flying to a warmer clime, and as the 
gra3 T and almost colorless sky began to assume a wintr} r 
appearance, I compiled from those letters this volume. 
I could change their phraseology but little, except to 
eliminate some personal allusions. If there is any charm 
in this book to any reader, it may be in my description of 
the little things that many travelers do not notice. 
Nearly all the illustrations are from a camera that my 
son, Elmer, used, and at the time the idea of placing 
them and the letters ;in a book was farther away than 
any chimerical dream. 

HENRY FULLER. 






/ 



I. 
>i Me dig, thousand Miles Song. 

Many, many moons ago I began to think and talk of taking 
a trip to Palestine. The idea grew like a cabbage plant in 
rainy weather, and instead of going to Palestine and return 
has culminated in a trip to encircle the globe. I take with 
me my son, Leslie Elmer. I think he is about 19 years old 
— I cannot recollect the year, month or day in which he was 
born. Mrs. Fuller always knows, and were I at home could 
ask her. 

For many years I have called the young man by the rather 
opprobrious epithet of "Crow," but in these writings we will 
just call him "Elmer." 

After oiling the roadway leading up to our home, in order 
that the stay-at-homes would not be smothered with dust, 
and packing our three leather suit cases we bade farewell to 
everybody about us, getting on our train at Redlands Junc- 
tion at 7:44 a. m. of July 15, 1002, thus commencing the long- 
est and more than likely the most eventful journey of our 
lives. 

As California is noted for large things, we noticed the 3,000 
acres of vineyard under one ownership at Cucamonga. 

It looked queer as we passed Summerland, near Santa Bar- 
bara, to see so many oil wells located in the edge of the 
ocean, some of them quite far from shore and most of them 
producing oil. It was sunset, and the bright gleams of twi- 
lipht cast a beautiful halo upon land and sea. Next morning 
as we arose from our sleeping car berths we were at Kir 



2 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

City, a few miles south of Salinas. The usual California 
scene of harvesting and threshing grain was about us. Taking 
the coast route to San Francisco, we get seats on the side 
overlooking the ocean. We pass along the head of Monterey 
bay, and from here to San Francisco through the beautiful 
Santa Clara valley, with the thriving city of San Jose in its 
center, a ride long to be remembered. Live oak trees, 
hundreds of acres of prune and cherry trees, green trees on 
the hillsides, prosperous looking farm and fruit homes — can 
there be anything prettier anywhere? Yet we saw no evi- 
dence of population and wealth coming in, as rapidly as we 
see it in our sunny Southland city of Redlands. Why is it? 
It is difficult to answer. It may be that there is a charm in 
orange growing or a something that appeals to the sense like 
the aroma and fragrance of a beautiful bouquet of roses 
which our Southland seems to possess over these northern 
valleys. 

Our trip north over the coast line was a delightful one. 
No dust, and with oil-burning engines, no cinders. The old 
lines through the San Joaquin valley takes the emigrant travel, 
therefore our train was filled with well-dressed people, most- 
ly Californians. The scenic attractions, because of their 
variety, are unsurpassed. As we walked about San Fran- 
cisco, and looked out upon the Golden Gate, we could hardly 
realize that in a few months, we expected to arrive again up- 
on a steamship from the west. While bidding good-bye to 
Elmer's aunt in Los Angeles, she asked him, "What do you 
think of your trip?" His answer was, "It all seems like a 
dream to me." We are the dreamers. 

In watching the crowds on the large ferry steamer to Oak- 
land, getting on our Pullman, and in looking around there is 
always something to amuse one. We are all creatures of 
circumstances, and act alike in many ways. 

At sunrise we were in Truckee. Such cool invigorating 
mountain air. As we saw the Lake Tahoe stage drive awav, 
we almost wished we were aboard, as we know that camping 
on the shores of Lake Tahoe is one of the most charming 



A TALE SIX THOUSAND MILES LONG. 3 

experiences. In passing down the eastern slope of these 
Sierra Nevada mountains, we saw in little meadows along- 
side of the Truckee river, men cutting timothy hay, some- 
thing we do not have in the orange-growing districts of Cal- 
ifornia. We were soon at Reno, the largest town in Nevada. 
For about fifty miles east of Reno we saw large gangs of 
men and horses grading what is called "Wadsworth cut-off. '' 
where this railroad is building forty-seven miles of entirely 
new road, not gaining anything in distance, but reducing the 
grade and making better curves. Farther east, at the Pal- 
isades, Carlin and Elko, they are also cutting off curves, tun- 
neling through mountains — all to save distance and lessen 
grade. They also propose a cut-off over the great Salt Lake, 
built for many miles on piles, where the water is in some 
places thirty feet deep, costing millions of dollars. Why all 
this expense? The Oriental traffic, only now in its infancy. 
will become so large in a few years that it will need several 
transcontinental routes to carry its traffic and travel. 

It seemed strange that here in mid-summer on the northern 
side of many of the larger mountains, in both Nevada and 
Utah, we saw patches of snow sparkling in the bright sun- 
light. 

In the early morning of July 18 we saw the great Salt Lake. 
Weather cool and delightful. As we passed up Webber can- 
yon on the Union Pacific railroad we admired the clear spark- 
ling river, green fields and meadows, while the beautiful Was- 
hatch mountains were not far away, with huge drifts of snow 
on them in places, bordered with slopes of green and green 
trees, the whole forming a panorama of exceeding beauty. 
Here in Utah one sees stores with four letters on them, Z. 
C. M. I. You all know what they mean — Zion's Co-opera- 
tive Mercantile Institution. Just before we passed out of 
Utah we saw far to the southeast the tops of the Rocky moun- 
tains. Over them were drifting some fleecy white clouds, as 
white as the drifts of snow on their summits. The first 
clouds of any sort we had seen since leaving Santa Barbara 
in California. 



4 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

We pass Evanston, Wyoming, a bright looking place, not 
mountainous, and good roads in all directions. Plenty of 
grass, a magnificent grazing country surrounding it. In many 
places where the land slopes upward from the track there are 
one, two and often three lines of fences made of posts and 
boards to catch the whirling, drifting snow of winter time. 

In the early morning of July 19 we were in the western 
part of Nebraska. While conversing with a lady who came 
on the train this morning she said : "We have had two weeks 
with no sunshine; clouoy weather all the time, with consid- 
erable rain — something unusual for us." I said: "Have 
you ever lived in California ?" She answered : "I have never 
been there." • My reply was, "I thought you had." I was 
astonished. I have lived in California twenty-seven years, 
and after hearing everybody, myself included, trying to ex- 
plain to visiting Eastern tourists about the wind, weather and 
many other things, can you wonder at my astonishment? All 
these years I had believed that the term "unusual" was wholly 
a Californian word and way of explanation. 

How true it is as some one has said, "Man made the towns, 
but God made the country." How I love such bits of rural 
scenery and glimpses of home life as one can see from a 
swiftly moving train. Were I an artist and had the time and 
space, I would love to pen-picture some of them to you, so 
that you, too, might catch something of an inspiration from 
their bright radiance and glow, in order that we might all be 
lifted up from our everyday toil and thought. 

The next morning, July 20, we were nearing Chicago. Ev- 
erybody was picking up their things. We stayed over Sun- 
day with friends and relatives. Late in the evening we took 
the Pennsylvania route for Columbus. The charms of Ohio 
have been sung in rhyme and written in prose so often that 
it is useless for me to add or expatiate upon them, only to say 
that the waving grain fields, the luxuriant corn just tasseling 
out, the haying already done, with the red clover springing 
up again, the patches of green forest, lawn and pasture — all 
combined will move the heart of an Ohioan as he returns 



A TALE SIX THOUSAND MILES LONG. 5 

to his native home as nothing else will do. As he catches 
sight of the old farm house, with its moss-covered roof, with 
the beautiful fruit and shade trees standing about as of old, 
the gates of his memory will unfold; his heart will be en- 
circled with such veins of pathos and tenderness that out 
of the very depths of his soul will spring tears of joy anc; 
gladness. We were much interested in examining the United 
States weather man's way of measuring rain up on the top 
of a twelve-story building. He showed us how the rain was 
measured, every one-hundredth of an inch making a record 
on paper by electricity, how the aneometer worked and how 
cloudy weather was recorded separate from sunshine. 

Before leaving Columbus, Ohio, we procured at a steam- 
ship agency's office two blank applications for our passports. 
We filled out the blanks ; describing the color of our eyes, 
place of birth, our age, height and weight. Then going before 
a notary public we made affidavit having a person to identify 
us. Then the applications were forwarded to Washington for 
the Secretary of State to sign, with a request to forward them 
to New York, to be in readiness on the date of our sailing. 

In the morning of July 23, we left Columbus for Albany, 
N. Y. The ride to Cleveland was a delightful one, the coun- 
try everywhere nearly as pretty as a park. Lake Erie looked 
cool and inviting . We wanted to take a sail. As we passed 
along through the grape-growing districts bordering on this 
lake we were interested in their manner of training them 
on a trellis. Everywhere in the East the fields of grain, hay 
and fruit are so small in their area that to a Californian they 
seem very strange. He wonders how the Eastern farmer can 
make any money from (as it seems to him') such little patches 
of land. He forgets that in California nearly everyone have 
their eggs, so to speak, "all in one basket," and they fre- 
quently spoil or spill before they can market them. Yet the 
average Californian is brave and full of resources (if some- 
times boastful). His California "way" is a sort of spontan- 
eous growth, because of his contact with great mountain, 
inspiring scenery and broad, fertile valleys. Can you wonder 



6 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

that he becomes imbued with lofty ideas and cannot do differ- 
ently if he would? His California education and training 
make him a peer among men everywhere. 

In the early dawn we reached Albany, alighting in one of 
the finest depots in America. We purchased our tickets to 
Valcour, Clinton county, N. Y. Our train passed through 
Saratoga, the once famous watering place. How changed I 
Such crowds of people I saw here a few years ago. Now it 
takes a horse race or something as exciting to crowd Sara- 
toga. We saw canal boats in the Champlain canal being 
towed along in the old way with horses and mules. We soon 
reached Whitehall, situated at the head of Lake Champlain. 
Then began a ride of wondrous beauty. Winding in and 
about rocky cliffs, our train ambled by the side of the lake 
to the north. Just across to the east lay picturesque Vermont, 
the "Green Mountain State." At the right now and then we 
would catch a glimpse of the outlying Adirondacks. There 
were many Lake George tourists on the train. We soon pass- 
ed the ruins of the old historic fort of Ticonderoga. The 
rippling waters on the lake, the gray, showery sky, the abund- 
ance of wild flowers about us, green trees, bushes and grass 
with meadows of timothy and clover, sparkling with red and 
white clover bloom. Can you wonder at our being charmed? 
I love to come in contact with nature, so that I, too, may 
catch something of its (to me) ever wondrous beauty and 
glow. Home again. Just here in this part of Clinton county 
I was born. Impressions of childhood, can we ever forget 
them? 

The few days we spent here were pleasant, happy ones. It 
was haying time. We were on historic ground. Within 
eight miles the battle of Plattsburgh was fought, and only 
a little way out on the lake was the naval battle, both of them 
being the turning point in the war of 1812. 

We walked about picking buttercups, white and yellow 
daisies, as in the "days of yore." We gathered wild rasp- 
berries in the pastures, and about the fence corners. We 
heard the robins in the maple and elm trees singing as we 



A TALE SIX THOUSAND MILES LONG. 7 

used to say "for rain." We went into the woods, and out 
of their depths came the notes of the different wild birds, so 
clear and musical, that somewhere out of the inmost depths 
of my soul there came an echoing and re-echoing chord of 
memory, with such harmonious tuning, that I knew I had 
caught the same sweet notes of song in my early boyhood 
days. 

I found grand old elm and maple trees that I had played 
under over 50 years ago. How my heart did leap for joy to 
see these familiar trees of boyhood memory again. Like a 
moving panorama, there came also other trees from the 
sensitive yet perfect plates of memory's storehouse, wherein 
I knew they stood here and there, so familiar in form and 
shape. Alas ! I wept because I saw them not. Other trees, 
doubtless grand and beautiful, had taken their places. I 
only glanced at them. My heart yearned for the trees of 
memory, the very best friends of my boyhood days. Oh, 
how I missed them. 

I went into the village cemetery. I stood at my father's 
grave. Over 40 years ago his burial took place. As I turned 
away there came into my heart such sweet strains of ten- 
derness and love that I wondered if an angel was tuning nr- 
for heaven. Often when a boy, instead of learning to skate 
and swim, as other boys did, I would get on some grassy 
knoll and lay on my back for hours watching the clouds 
come and go, or if too cold for that, would perchance watch 
the crows as they went "cawing" by, or the squirrels as tney 
gamboled about in the leafless trees. 

I walked upon a hill. Over yonder in the east away beyond 
the lake I saw the Green mountains of Vermont — Camel's 
Hump, Mount Mansfield and all the rest. Turning around 
to the west and southwest, I saw the Adirondacks, with the 
familiar lines of Mount Marcy among their towering peaks. 
How glad I was to see them. We went fishing on Lake 
Champlain, catching some perch, as we expected to. As wt 
folded up our lines, I wondered if the next unfolding of them 
would be on the Sea of Galilee. 



8 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

We went to church. There were just twelve in attendance, 
counting the preacher. He said he was disappointed because 
it rained and no more came. He preached one of the best 
sermons I ever heard in my life. I shouted out some real 
"Amens." The walls of that little old country stone church 
were so unaccustomed to any such sound that the crickets 
paused in their singing and wondered "What next." 

Next morning we were again in Albany. We walked up 
to the State building. We went in. This building, now com- 
pleted, cost $25,000,000, and was thirty years in building. We 
admired the wonderful stone architecture everywhere, the 
polished marble pillars, paintings of great worth and value. 
As we stood in the Senate chamber I said, "We will see 
something better in Europe." Elmer replied, "I do not know ; 
I think this is pretty grand." We were interested in the battle 
flags — 232 of them. All were carried by New York troops. 

July 29, at 8:50 a. m., we boarded the "New York," one of 
the day steamers on the Hudson river. A great many pas- 
sengers came on board. They seemed to come from every- 
where, and in every way. The "summer girl" as neat and 
trim in appearance as ships at sea, came jauntily aboard. This 
magnificent steamer soon started. We were seated on the 
upper deck and somewhere from the passenger saloon below, 
there came enlivening strains of orchestral music. Our 
steamer only stopped at the larger cities on the river, taking 
on and letting off numerous passengers. We were interested 
all day long in looking at the passengers about us, the scenery 
on each shore, and in passing and meeting yachts and boats 
of various kinds. We will not enter into any detailed des- 
cription as we intend to sail up the Rhine in a few days, and 
then may make some comparisons. We were much interested 
in the height and width of span of the railroad bridge at 
Poughkeepsie, so high that no drawbridge is needed. We 
entered the city, as you all know, down by the famous River- 
side Drive, where everybody recognizes General Grant's tomb, 
and just a little distance away are a group of noble buildings, 
the Columbia University. Soon our steamer reached its pier 



A TALE SIX THOUSAND MILES LONG. 9 

at the foot of Twenty-second street We were carried along 
as it were by the crowding, moving throng of passengers from 
pier to street. Reaching our hotel in the heart of the metrop- 
olis of America, we retired for the night early. Very soon 
Elmer came and helloed into my room, wanting to know 
"what time it was." I looked at my watch and replied "half 
past eleven." He had awakened from a sound sleep, and 
hearing the rush of cars and hacks on the street, and people 
walking and talking almost everywhere, he concluded (with 
our rooms facing on a court) that it was morning, dressed 
and made his toilet before a suspicion of the truth dawned 
upon him. Except on stormy nights there is little cessa- 
tion of noise on the New York streets. 

The next morning we took the elevated railroad. After 
riding to about 170th street, Elmer asked, "How long can we 
keep this thing up." The thousands of blocks in every direc- 
tion, all solidly built up, except little yards and courts for 
light and air, the miles and miles of avenues and streets he 
had seen filled with the rush and roar of city traffic, and the 
length of time and distance, we had already ridden, paying 
only a nickle for our fare, prompted his question. I replied, 
"If one knows where to get on and how to manage, he can 
ride 28 miles in this city for one fare." 

We went into St. Paul's chapel on Broadway, erected in 1766. 
We looked at the pew Washington had rented there at one 
time. Only a little way off on the opposite side of the street 
was a "sky scraper," thirty stories high. The building had a 
tower. Even that was rented and occupied by tenants. We 
were told that farther up in the city, a building was being 
erected 33 stones high. We did not see it. 

We walked over the Brooklyn bridge. We saw cars go by 
marked "To Coney Island." It was with difficulty we jumped 
on one, as they were loaded with people. Passing across 
entirely this portion of Greater New York, and after a ride 
of four or five miles in comparatively open country, we reach- 
ed Coney Island. We immediately walked to the seashore. 
There was scarcely room to walk between the people. Ev- 



10 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

erybody seemed to De dressed in holiday attire. The surf broke 
much closer to the shore and with, at this time, smaller waves 
than you are accustomed to either at Long Beach or Santa 
Monica. Everywhere we went we could have counted thous- 
ands of people. Ransack your memory; count up every fake 
scheme you ever 'saw, at a fair, circus or anywhere else; 
multiply them all by at least four fold, and you have Coney 
Island. Not many miles away we saw the great hotels of 
Brighton and Manhattan beaches. With another look at the 
largest eating and dancing pavilions we ever saw, full of peo- 
ple ( a glance at the race course, where thousands of men and 
women had paid 75 cents each to see and perhaps wager on a 
few horses running, we entered our car for New York. 

In the forenoon of Saturday, August 2, we took a car for 
pier 54, North River, and boarded the steamship Astoria for 
Glasgow, Scotland. 

Having been shown the staterooms on the steamer our 
tickets called for, and taking thereto our baggage, we sat 
down, and began a sort of retrospection. Expectations were 
high. From pier to pier our steamer, bound for Glasgow, 
was to sail a distance of 301 1 miles. Very quickly a mentaj 
calculation placed this voyage at about one-eighth of the 
entire distance around the world. We had secured our pass- 
ports, coming directly from Washington, during our stay in 
New York. On them was affixed the great red seal of the 
Department of State, and the personal signature of the Sec- 
retary, John Hay. In the description my age was given three 
times older than Elmer's ; in height I was three inches 
shorter. It made me feel small and dwarfish. The passports 
are good for two years. 

We were tired of looking at gray and somber skies, with 
clouds of dripping rain every now and then. And almost ev- 
erybody we saw east of Wyoming had a pale, white pinched 
look to their faces. We missed the dry invigorating air and 
golden sunshine of California. We were afraid of asthma, 
bronchitis and all their kindred ills. The previous evening 
we had attended a religious meeting in the open air, on the 




BULL-HEAD FOUNTAIN 

AT EPHESU9. 



e 



A TALE SIX THOUSAND MILES LONG. 11 

roof of a building on Eighth avenue several stories high, over 
Stephen Merritt's undertaking establishment. Mr. Merritt is 
the undertaker that buried General Grant. We laughed 
heartily as we rememebered how abruptly the meeting ended, 
as after more than an hour of service, including quite a 
long talk by Mr. Merritt, he said : "Now, after these few 
preliminary remarks, we will commence the meeting," when 
the clouds broke loose again, and rain began to patter, and 
after the chairs were piled up, and the piano put under shel- 
ter, everybody scrambled for cover. There were potted 
palms (artificial) on the roof and about the building, looking 
so real that we thought of our sunny southland, where they 
grow in the yards and by the roadside. 

We saw on the pier, drays loading with large bales of 
hides. They came from India. 

Our musings were suddenly interrupted by officers of the 
ship going fore and aft, calling out, "Everybody not going to 
sail go ashore." We then witnessed an impressive scene of 
leave-taking or "parting of the ways." The crust of every- 
day life (our greatest taskmaster), of habit, of culture, of 
polish, of money getting, of fashion, of self, and of pride was 
broken, and there came to the surface great waves of the 
emotional, inner self or nature, in those about us. We saw 
loving hand grasps and embraces, where in silence heart 
speaks to heart. Gestures of animation and earnestness every- 
where. Strong men and women wept. Loving messages were 
intrusted to loving hearts to carry and deliver beyond the 
sea. The gangways were pulled ashore. The ship's hawsers 
were lifted from the pier. A flash of electric signals went 
from the pilot room down to the engineer. The engines 
started. The propeller blades began to move. Our ship was 
under way. On the end of the pier stood many people, wav- 
ing handkerchiefs and hats, while on the ship hundreds re- 
sponded as we moved away. A little puffing tug pushed the 
ship about as it turned its prow down North river. The 
inner harbor was soon traversed, then a narrow channel, 
marked out by bouys in the form of a semi-circle, then passing 



12 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

Sandy Hook, and ten miles east the pilot left and we sailed 
away. Not a sea gull, nor duck, nor any bird did we see, 
except a few stormy petrels, until we were over 2000 miles 
from New York. And not much marine life visible. Some 
porpoises, not as large as on the Pacific coast. The captain 
and most of the crew belong to the Royal Naval Reserve of 
England and go training once each year. The passengers 
soon became acquainted with each other. In the dining saloon 
the seat you occupy the first meal is expected to be retained 
and occupied by you at all subsequent meals. 

One bright morning we went on deck and about twenty 
miles away was the northwest coast of Ireland. The moun- 
tains higher than I expected to see; not a tree on any one of 
them, but green to their tops, except where bare rock cov- 
ered their surface but not much of that. From a distance 
there was a great resemblance to our Southern California 
coast range, except our mountains present a more serrated 
appearance. Soon on their slopes farms began to appear, with 
whitewashed stone houses and country roads. Some of the 
mountains near the coast were too wind-swept to be cul- 
tivated, apparently covered with moss. Many of the others 
were too steep. As we passed along east on this northern 
coast the country improved. Many of our Irish passengers 
fairly danced with joy as they saw the "Emerald Isle" once 
more. I did not blame them, as I never had seen any scenery 
more quaint and pretty. Abrupt rocks stood like ' sentinels 
along the shore. The contour of the bays are graceful in 
their curves. The mountains became lower, the valleys larger 
with villages and farms everywhere. On projecting heads of 
rock and islands were great stone light houses. We came to 
anchor at Moorill to let off the passengers for Londonderry. 
Will I ever forget the scene? Just opposite to where we 
were, perhaps 500 yards away, were the ruins of an old castle, 
built by the Normans in the thirteenth century. Some of the 
bastions, towers and walls, were standing. 

Said Mr. Clayton, a passenger from Washington, D. C. : 
"This is worth the cost of the whole trip — to only see this old 



A TALE SIX THOUSAND MILES LONG. 13 

castle." I thought so, too. We looked south toward Lon- 
donberry. We saw miles and miles of gently sloping, un- 
dulating country, all covered with little farms. On this 
bright August day, were it truthfully painted on canvas by an 
artist, the whole world of art would be talking about it. 

On a little steamer called the Samson our Irish passengers 
sailed away to Londonderry. We resumed our journey. Near- 
ly all the morning we haa seen, probably eighty miles away, 
the tops of mountains on some Scottish islands. Among 
them were two notable peaks, the "Paps of Jura." It takes a 
remarkably clear day to see them from the northern Irish 
coast. As we sailed across the channel to Glasgow, the first 
point of interest is Rathlin island. It is not far from the 
Irish coast. This island rises abruptly out of the sea, about 
800 feet high. Its precipitous sides and comparatively level 
top are as green as a park, yet not a tree or bush in sight. 
We could see a lighthouse, two dwellings and some cattle 
feeding. Soon we came close to the "Mull of Cantire," a 
peninsula jutting out from Scotland, with only now and then 
a house in sight. As we approached the entrance to the Clyde, 
we saw to the south a large dome-shaped circular rock sev- 
eral hundred feet high, pointed at its top and symmetrical in 
shape. I did not tire of looking at it, so bold and grand in 
appearance. Its sides, too precipitous to climb, are the home 
and breeding place of thousands of sea gulls. Its name is 
Ailsa Craig. The next point of interest was the Isle of Arran. 
These Scotch farms, dotted with stone houses and little 
fields, divided with thorn hedges, made us exclaim, "How 
beautiful !" 

The beautiful Clyde is in some respects like the lower Hud- 
son river, yet possessing a beauty and charm that is peculiar 
to Scotland, and must be seen to be appreciated. There are 
very few costly and palatial residences overlooking the Clyde, 
not over a half dozen, and they are owned by Lord or Mar- 
quis somebody, who apparently owns all the adjacent country. 
So far all the trees we have seen are planted. Do not think 
this part of the Clyde is narrow, for it is very wide in many 



14 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

places. Off to the right is the city of Ardrassb.11, where pas- 
sengers are carried by rail from Glasgow to take the steamer 
for Belfast, Ireland. 

We soon came to long rows of stone houses on the north 
shore, all looking alike as peas in a pod, and I asked what they 
were for. A Scotchman replied, "They are the summer 
homes of Glasgow people." I saw a small pier and a steamer 
landing and boats out fishing, but how different from our 
Southern California summer homes by the sea. All these 
stone houses were as gray as gray could be, while the farmer 
uses whitewash on his stone house. 

We soon reached Grennock, where as the Scotch people 
quaintly say, is the "tail of the hills," meaning that from 
here several miles to Glasgow, the Clyde narrows until for 
a long distance there is barely room for two steamers to pass. 
At daybreak our ship started from Grennock for Glasgow. 
I immediately arose, dressed and went on deck. We were in 
one of the greatest shipbuilding centers of the world. We 
saw all sorts of ships, in all stages of construction. Over 
yonder the keel of a great battleship was just being laid, 
while by its side the proud clipper ship of modern style ana 
?p~?d was almost ready for launching. We saw, as it seem- 
ed to me, armies of men going to work. We passed by the 
Singer Sewing Machine Co.'s plant, where there are eleven 
thousand men employed. This point is the central head- 
quarters of their business, with branch offices in every other 
city around the globe. Their buildings and surroundings were 
like a city complete in itself. 

Glasgow has doubled its population in about twenty years, 
now numbering nearly a million of people. Our steamer 
came to its pier. We went on shore. Everybody had to 
open their trunks and valises for inspection, as spirits, per- 
fumes and tobaccos are subject to a tax. We told the custom 
house officer that we were just "tramping around the world," 
so he put a chalk mark on our luggage, and we were free. 
The ocean voyage was ended; tranquil seas, enshrouded in 
soft, sweet summer skies had been our lot. We had met 



A TALE SIX THOUSAND MILES LONG. 15 

two large passenger steamers just outside of Sandy Hook, 
seen one or two freight steamers at a distance, and met two 
or three more off the coast of Ireland. We had encountered 
no ice, yet near Newfoundland one night the barometer drop- 
ped three points and the ship slackened her speed. We were 
near an ice field. The most impressive incident to me of the 
entire ocean trip occurred, while about 300 miles off the 
Irish coast, when some of us saw, not over 500 yards to the 
right, something sticking up about ten feet out of the water, 
looking like the top of the mast of a ship. Some sailors 
standing by me said it was, although they had not seen it 
before. Perchance some day some ship sailed for the last 
time, and is now a derelict in the seas. 

We noticed that nearly all the drays or trucks had only 
two wheels, and were drawn by only one horse. Such large 
horses, with large feet having long hair above the fetlocks, 
I never saw before. Over the collar of each horse was a wide 
strip of leather running to a point several inches above the 
horse, then two iron prongs reaching upwards, one on either 
side, looking like horns. 

As we came into the city we noticed that all the street cars 
were two-storied and well filled with people, especially on 
top. Double tracks in the streets, yet each car in passing 
seemed to us to be on the wrong track, running just the 
reverse of the way in our American cities. 

Everybody looked at us, even the small boy. They knew 
we were strangers. Nearly every building was four stories 
high, built of stone, and the surprising part of it was that we 
saw no chimneys as in America. There were stone projections 
oblong in shape on the roofs, and out of them single lengths 
of vitrified pipe, sometimes a dozen or more in one clump, 
evidently each room having a separate flue to the roof. The 
buildings being all of nearly one height, and so many bright 
colored flues in sight, in contrast to the gray stone and gray 
slate with which all buildings are covered, presented a pecul- 
iar appearance. 

We went into a restaurant. A person at our table ordered 



16 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

some scones. Wondering what they were, we ordered some 
also. There came to us about eight pieces of bread as large 
or larger than a biscuit, of different shapes, some of them like 
biscuit in taste, others like rolls, and among them two pan- 
cakes, all cold. The butter on a plate was little round in- 
dented balls, each a little larger in size than a cherry. There 
was also a plate of cakes, of different colors and kinds, about 
the size of cup cakes. We ordered milk. Each glass of milk, 
scone or cake we used cost one penny each. Everytime we 
changed some of our good American money into gold, silver 
or copper coins of the British realm, there came a feeling over 
us that we were getting inferior money. To us at first the 
changed money seemed to have an uncanny look. In the 
hotels we found good accommodations, cheaper than the same 
class in Los Angeles. Some of the furniture looked old. 
The bedsteads were iron and brass, the iron was paint- 
ed black instead of white, as in America. The rooms average 
larger in size and many of them have two double beds. The 
Scotch people say "fust" for first, "wee" for little, "bonnie" 
for good, and sometimes "hanie" for home. With their Scotch 
accent we sometimes had to ask what they said. Our Cali- 
fornia ways and words were equally puzzling to them. 

We had a letter of introduction to John White, keeper of 
a restaurant for fifty years. We entered his business place. 
I asked a young lady if Mr. John White was in. She replied, 
"Do you want some jam and bread." We took long rides in 
the street cars on the top story ; fare, one and one-half pence, 
and found much of interest at every turn. We visited the 
old Glasgow cathedral, built by the Roman Catholics several 
hundred years ago, after the Reformation under John Knox 
it became Presbyterian. We saw one pair of old doors leading 
to the vestry that have hung in place 600 years. In the vestry 
was an old chair said to have belonged to Oliver Cromwell. 
Elmer sat down in it. I declined the honor. The oldest 
part of this church was built about the twelfth century One 
window in commemoration of Queen Victoria's visit cost 
$12,500. We saw some crypts down in the basement of the 




RIVER ABANA, 

DAMASCUS. SYRIA. 



A TALE SIX THOUSAND MILES LONG. 17 

church, dating back to the Twelfth century. Glasgow, on 
account of soft coal and a great manufacturing center, is as 
smoky as Pittsburg or Cleveland. In business activity it re- 
sembles an American city. 

One morning we purchased tickets to Edinburgh via Loch 
Lomond and Loch Katrine, costing seventeen shilling each, 
over the North British railway. 

We wended our way to the station. There were many 
trains coming and going. You have all seen descriptions of 
how the apartment and corridor cars look. You just walk 
along outside the train and open the door from the plat- 
form wherever you like and step into the car. There are 
four or five apartments in each car. The train of perhaps 
a dozen coaches are nearly all third class, perhaps one first 
class looking no better. No longer any second class on 
these roads. Like everybody else, our tickets were third 
class. The first class car should have been draped in mourn- 
ing to correspond to its lonesome look. The platform was 
filled with people hurrying to and fro. All the fashionable 
ones, of course, had porters to carry their luggage. No large 
trunks. Nearly all the baggage was small enough to go 
into the apartment with you ; if not, there was a baggage 
van coach on the train, but you would have to claim it at 
destination. No system of checking. Our train was filled 
with well-dressed people as we left Glasgow for Balloch. 
Just before starting a conductor came along and punched 
each of our tickets, but not locking us in, as I expected. 
In our compartment there were ten, all adults — the ut- 
most limit of its seating capacity. For several miles our 
train ran down the Clyde, passing Dunbarton Castle and the 
shipbuilding centers. Nearly all roadways for street travel 
are elevated above the track in the country, while in the 
cities tunnels are used, or a natural depression in the land. 
All trains run swiftly between stations with no ringing of 
bells, as there are no railroad crossings. This August morn- 
ing the farms, with haying in full progress and fields of 
oats, barley, wheat, beans and potatoes, with pastures and 



18 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

cattle, sheep and horses grazing on them, with wild flowers 
everywhere — could we but say, "This is bonnie Scotland?" 
Arriving at Balloch we found a pretty steamer waiting 
for us, already well loaded with passengers from trains on 
other roads. Our train load crowded on, many of us only 
having standing room. Shortly we were sailing over Loch 
Lomond, the largest of Scottish lakes. Just then a man came 
walking among us, dressed in uniform, saying, "Has ye all 
got tickets?" What a cosmopolitan lot of people. Several 
hundred, mostly English speaking, yet from everywhere. 
Everybody wore such a look of expectancy, as we all knew 
that this lake scenery has a world-wide reputation. At first 
the lake was quite wide; there were also a good many trees 
on the hillsides. In the distance in front of us there were 
tall, rugged mountains. One range looked as high and re- 
minded me of the Catskills on the Hudson. There were 
farms on which were sheep feeding, and altogether from the 
lake was a scene of pastoral beauty. The lake is twenty-one 
miles long and five miles wide at our entrance, narrowing 
down to one-half mile wide. The mountains grow bolder, 
some of them over 3000 feet high. Nooks and dells of tim- 
ber, wooded islands so sylvanlike in appearance that as our 
steamer glided along between them we seemed to be in fairy 
land. There were boats with people in them fishing. Beau- 
tiful towns that the steamer stopped at where we saw flowers 
creeping up on the houses and in the yards, and troops of 
gaily dressed people. The kaleidoscope of color all about 
us, the green, brown, purple and gray on the mountains, the 
still blue waters and little rocky isles, with only a bit of 
green, or a tree or two, a rare bit for the Scotch poets to 
write about. Loch Lomond, v/ill we ever forget your 
entrancing beauty and loveliness? Our soul says, "Never." 
Our boat landed us at Iversnaid. The most of the passen- 
gers had landed at the different towns along the lake, yet 
there were four large tally-ho English coaches, with coach- 
men and footmen dressed in red coats to take the 100 peo- 
ple left over the hills to Loch Katrine. We climbed on a 



A TALE SIX THOUSAND MILES LONG. 19 

coach. The driver cracked his whip. We were away, over 
rock, hill and dell, with beautiful wild flowers about us for 
two miles, and then we take the steamer on Loch Katrine. 
The tally-ho ride had been a chapter of surprises at every 
turn. Now in dense woods, then by the side of a rippling 
brook. 

We sailed away on Loch Katrine. We were in Rob Roy's 
country. No wind, no sunshine, yet this placid lake looked 
like a mirror, reflecting rocks, trees, birds flying overhead, 
and sharp mountain peaks, as though its surface was one 
great French plate glass. This lake is narrow and not many 
trees in sight. Upon the mountain sides were fields of heath 
bloom, red in color, looking like velvet, and in other places 
were great stretches of the famous heather just coming into 
its purple color and bloom. Interspersed among and around 
both were irregular patches of ferns, and brown rocky places 
with grass and wild flowers, all forming a scene of such 
beauty and color that I said to a Scotchman, a world-wide 
traveler, standing by my side, with whom I had been con- 
versing, "Will I see anything grander in Switzerland?'' He 
replied, "No, nothing more bonnie except the mountains will 
be a wee bit higher." As we reached the steamer landing 
another lot of English tally-ho coaches were ready. A ride 
of five miles was before us, over Scottish highlands and 
moors. Not many trees, and in many places none at all, 
while heath, heather, ferns, grass, wild flowers and steep 
mountain sides with their tops bathed in soft and seem- 
ingly ever-present summer clouds, made it a ride I will 
never forget. Just before sunset, as we drove into Aberfoyle, 
a little highland town, the clouds lifted in the west, a bit 
of sunshine shone forth, lighting up the highlands and moors 
about us with such gleams of sparkling, golden color, that 
we concluded, although the railroad train for Edinburgh 
was waiting for the stages, to break our ride, as we had a 
right to do, and resume our journey the next day. In the 
ions. lingering twilight, after eating our supper, we walked 
out on a hill, and as the bright twilight slowly ebbed away. 



20 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

Elmer's enthusiasm, which gathers very slowly as compared 
with my impulsive self, broke forth, "I do not wonder that 
poets grow here. It is such a pretty country." 

Early the next morning, with birds singing, I walked over 
the moor. Steep and rocky in many places, but Oh, what 
rugged beauty ! With what eagerness I gathered the blue 
bells, buttercups, daisies, queen of the meadow, heath bloom, 
heather and other flowers I can not name. I wandered 
farther and farther away. Up yonder mountain trail amid 
the crags and rocks, covered with verdure, I saw wending her 
way upward, a Highland girl, trooping so gracefully along 
that I thought of the beautiful poem Wordsworth wrote, en- 
titled the "Sweet Highland Girl." I stalked the grouse as 
I walked along, and I paused to hear the robins sing. I heard 
the bleating of some lambs and their echoing cry from crag 
to crag. Over in a wooded copse some wild birds sang such 
sweet notes that out of my soul came answering cries. My 
voice came forth in rapturous tones, and loudly I sang snatches 
of sweet song. I was in tune with nature's choir, and we 
all lifted our voices with wondrous power. The angels heard 
and understood, and paused to. catch the sweet refrain; then 
flew away to heaven above, to carry the song of nature's love. 
Was it not a touch of Paradise? A foretaste of Eden life 
again? Reluctantly I returned to Aberfoyle. 

We entered our train for Edinburgh and were away from 
the Highlands and the Trossacks. 

The word moor seems to be applied to large scopes of coun- 
try where there are no trees. The Scotch people call a hill 
a "Fell," and everywhere in the British Isles a stone wall is 
called a stone dyke. 

We entered a beautiful farming country. Some ladies en- 
tered our compartment at a small station. As the train sped 
along I heard one of them say, "How fine the corn is look- 
ing." I knew what they meant. They were talking of fields 
of oats all headed out. There is not a spear of Indian corn 
to be seen in all this land. We passed fields of peat and 
We saw little clumps of Scotch thistles. Hay when cut is 



A TALE SIX THOUSAND MILES LONG. 21 

only partially cured. It is put in small ricks, then after two 
or three weeks, is hauled on a two-wheeled cart, one rick 
at a time, alongside of the stables, and put up in large 
ricks, or finely shaped hay stacks, coming to a point at the 
top. Then nicely thatched with fine, straight hay, cords tied 
about, so the wind will not lift or scatter. Buildings are too 
costly in this country to have barns to put hay in. 

About 10 o'clock we reached Sterling. We were on his- 
toric ground. We again broke our journey and concluded 
to explore Sterling Castle. Being hungry, we went into a 
restaurant and ordered some strawberries and cream, with 
just a few scones. Beautiful red berries — we wondered where 
they got their color, with so little sunshine. Somebody painted 
them — it was the God of nature, not man. We never saw 
finer currants than grow here, and the gooseberries are as 
large as cherries, the best in the world. 

We walked up little, narrow, old paved streets, scarcely 
wide enough for teams to pass, with buildings to corre- 
spond, and were at the entrance of Sterling Castle. Our 
thoughts went back to nearly 2000 years ago when the Ro- 
mans invaded this country and taught our savage ancestors 
how to till the land, and commenced fortifications on this 
very spot. Then in feudal times, about the twelfth century, 
this castle was erected. We were shown how the moat was 
made, the drawbridge arranged, the portcullis operated, and 
the numerous loopholes, to shoot with bow and arrow at as- 
sailants. We saw where the battle of Bannockburn was 
fought, and just beyond on a hill the noble monument erected 
in memory of Wallace. Here resided Mary, the queen of 
Scotland, for a time, and just in front of her bedroom win- 
dow is a tournament ground laid out — and nobody living 
knows how to play the game that former Kings and Queens 
of Scotland used to play on the same grounds, now forever 
to be kept (by act of parliament) as the grounds were centuries 
ago. All castles are built on high rocks or rocky plateaus, 
in this country, and they would have been inaccessible to 
this day if guns and gunpowder had not come into use. This 



22 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

castle is now a recruiting station for a Highland regiment 
of soldiers, and here we saw for the first time soldiers and 
sentries in full uniform of the kilts. 

Getting on another train we again started for Edinburgh, 
passing by much of interest, for in this land, to an Ameri- 
can, there is something to attract his attention each turn he 
makes. We came to the great bridge over the Frith of Forth, 
where our train crossed it — 160 feet above the water level. 
It is one and one-fifth miles long. It took seven years to 
build it, and 50,000 tons of steel were used in its construc- 
tion. As our train pased over we were not conscious of a 
jar or quiver. The wonderful part of it is there are but three 
spans of the bridge. Great are the achievements of men. 

Toward evening our train glided into Waverly station at 
Edinburgh, the "Modern Athens" of Europe, a city of about 
300,000 people. It is one of the most romantic and beauti- 
fully situated cities in the world. I have seen no city any- 
where, where there are so many people passing to and fro at 
seemingly all hours from the railroad trains as in this great 
station, except in our Philadelphia. We secured good rooms 
very quickly, in Leith street, only a minute's walk from 
the general postoffice and station. What a difference as com- 
pared with Glasgow, not in size, but in character and aspect. 
Everybody at work in Glasgow — a bustling manufacturing 
city. Here once the Capital of Scotland, with great uni- 
versities and noble schools, yet on many streets of the older 
part of the city where its nobility once lived are the many 
wretched homes of the poor. The public inns or taverns 
(never called saloons here) were numerous, and many thou- 
sands carried marks of dissipation and vice in their faces. 
Many others had a look of hopeless despair, the inevitable 
result of grinding poverty. We were beginning to come in 
contact with the poor of Europe. 

Princess street is the fashionable thoroughfare of the 
boulevard style, with trees, flowers and walks on one side 
and fine stores with fashionable hotels over them on the 
other side. Sir Walter Scott's monument on the side where 




STREET SCENE IN DAMASCUS 



/ 



A TALE SIX THOUSAND MILES LONG. 23 

the little parks are is the handsomest one I ever saw. The 
design — by a poor shepherd boy — is graceful, artistic and soul 
inspiring. It is 200 feet high. We visited John Knox's house 
on High street. He was the great reformer in Scotland and 
founder of Presbyterianism. The house projects into the 
street several feet, and every pleasant day may be seen car- 
riages full of people, and many pedestrian strangers standing 
about, gazing at it. The house was built in 1470. On the 
side, and running around the corner above the first story, 
used as a store, is this inscription : "Lofe God above all and 
ye nychbour as ye self." We ascended the stairs outside in 
the front. The price of admission is sixpence. Then by a 
corridor and interior stairway came to the entrance of the 
dining and sitting room of Knox's time. Now this entrance 
to his rooms is enclosed, a little projection looking up High 
street. In his day it was simply an open balcony. These 
rooms are in the third story. The stairway and the old door, 
with the old-fashioned iron knocker are just the same today. 
The stairs and threshold are of stone. How these stone 
steps and threshold are worn. The tramp of feet for cen- 
turies will grind away the hardest rock. We entered the din- 
ing room. Here by a window looking up High street is where 
he frequently preached to the people in the street. Just here, 
sitting in a chair, he died on the 24th of November, 1572. 
The room is quite large, with square and oval corners, a fire- 
place on one side and at the back a door leading to his bed- 
room. On the side toward the front was another old door 
leading to a little entryway, the entrance to his study. This 
little room, not over 5x7, was built while he lived in the 
house, October, 1561. He said of this little study that he 
"only wanted room for himself and his Bible." It had only 
one little half window. In it was the first Bible ever printed 
in Scotland, 1576 — not Knox's, as this was after he died. 
While the rooms throughout are furnished as in Knox's time 
there is only one piece of furniture in the house that be- 
longed to him, an old chair in the study. The rooms are in 
panel style, and when one of the old doors is closed, it looks 



24 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

like the side of the room. There are only portions of the 
ceiling and sides of the rooms, just the same as when Knox 
was alive. One can see the difference by close inspection. 
What interested me greatly was that just by the window 
where he died, in a jog of the room, was a bit of landscape 
painting on the old original wall, so dimmed with age that 
one had to stoop to catch the light from the window, in order 
to trace the trees and scenery. In sight up the street is St. 
Giles cathedral, where he preached. Aside from that asso- 
ciation, we were not particularly interested in the cathedral. 
In the rear of the cathedral, in Parliament square, is a little 
bronze tablet in the pavement, marked "J- K., 1572," and this 
is supposed to mark the spot where John Knox is buried. 
Still keeping up the street we come to the castle of Edin- 
burgh. Here we saw the oldest building in Edinburgh, a 
chapel erected by Queen Margaret over 800 years ago. We 
saw the crown once worn by the Scottish kings and queens, 
also the crown jewels. We saw Queen Mary's room, where 
her sons, James VI of Scotland and James I of England were 
born. Some of the original ceiling is still in place. We saw 
old cannon and there were the ever-present soldiers, all 
dressed in Highland costume. The moats, drawbridges and 
all about it were interesting. 

We then went to Holyrood palace, about a mile away. Here 
Queen Mary lived, and we saw her bedroom and bed, the 
finery decaying with age. The walls are covered with tapes- 
try and in their time must have been very handsome. Ad- 
joining her room is a larger room called the audience cham- 
ber. It was here John Knox and the queen had such stormy 
interviews. In this room is another bed, all made up, said to 
be the bed Charles I slept in. Everywhere you go here in this 
country to old castles, palaces, cathedrals and abbeys, there 
are many people like yourself tramping along the same way, 
from nearly all countries. Yet Americans number the most 
and Oriental countries none. 

We rode six miles in the country to see Rosslyn chapel. It 
was built about 1450. Now only some of the walls are stand- 



A TALE SIX THOUSAND MILES LONG. 25 

ing, as it was destroyed by one of Cromwell's generals. The 
ride was a delightful one; the country begins just where the 
city leaves off, and there are little Scotch villages and glimi' 
of rural life as you drive along. All over the British isles the 
roads are extremely good, bordered by a hawthorn hedge, not 
wide, and no ditches at the side. There is not much more 
than room for two wagons to pass. The grades are cut 
down and they are the best I ever saw, and are kept in 
perfect repair. Teams pass one another to the left instead 
of the right. Through the little villages there is usually a 
narrow sidewalk on one side. In the fields of grain and by 
the hedges there were many wild poppies, not golden, but a 
deep scarlet. Waving in the breeze, with the corn and wheat, 
they make a striking picture. There came a heavy shout r 
of rain which prevented us from wandering along the banks 
of the heavily wooded Esk to the romantic home of Wil- 
liam Drummond, a Scotch poet, called Hawthornden. We 
then returned to the city and as we had been invited out to 
tea by a Scottish lady, we spent the evening in her hor ■ 
and were entertained in royal style. 

We were in Edinburgh over Sunday. No street cars run- 
ning until about 10 o'clock, and only last year did they com- 
mence running on Sunday at any hour. 

In the forenoon we went to the Wesleyan church (as Meth- 
odist churches are called here )in Nicholson square. As we 
enter we noticed on the front, "Erected A. D. 1815." The 
preacher wore a black gown, and the pulpit was very high. 
When preaching his head was on a level with the lower tier 
of seats of the gallery. The sermon and also attendance were 
good. More singing than in America, and when the benedic- 
tion is pronounced everybody sits down, which is the custom 
in all the churches. 

Monday morning, August 18, we purchased our tickets to 
Manchester, England. At 6 :20 a. m. we left Waverly sta- 
tion, which covers twenty-three acres of ground, and one- 
half of it roofed over. It is the largest station in the United 
Kingdom. Our train was a slow one, only local. The rea- 



26 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

we were on this slow poke of a train was we could stop at 
Melrose Abbey, some thirty miles away, and have about four 
hours, then catch the fast express on its way to London. All 
country stations are enclosed with iron fences, buildings or 
hedges, and you cannot get out without showing your ticket. 
We saw a rolling, beautiful country, with parks of trees, 
scattering ones in the fields, sometimes rows of them along 
the roads. Great flocks of crows were quite common, and 
now and then a scarecrow set up in the fields reminded us that 
the farmer had trouble. We met freight trains. All the 
freight cars are about one-half as long as those you see in 
America, and scarcely any of them roofed. The open ones, 
unless loaded with coal or iron, are covered with large rub- 
ber covers. It looks real strange to see long trains of these 
short cars covered up. Some of the country was very hilly, 
yet pasture and cultivation everywhere unless covered with 
trees. We arrived at Melrose and walked just a short dis- 
tance to the Abbey through this little country town. Roofless 
and in ruins, yet its outlines were so imposing and symmetri- 
cal that we were immediately interested. Built in the twelfth 
century and battered in the wars of the Reformation, yet it 
only takes one glance to command your admiration. The 
carved stones, the beautiful tracing of the foliage, the life- 
like figures so real, the sculptor's private mark, and the 
amount of all this work is a marvel to everyone. Sir Walter 
Scott wrote about it, and on a stone, by a pile of rocks, once 
the foundation of a mighty pillar, was his favorite seat to 
view these grand ruins. The more we walked about, the more 
beauty we saw. It must have taken many men all their lives 
to carve such delicate work and so many lifelike figures on 
the walls of this monastery. No two of the figures are alike. 
There are roses, lilies, thistles, ferns, heaths, oak and ash 
leaves, and many other kinds of carvings, all chiseled with 
such a perfect imitation of nature that I doubt if there 
are sculptors that can equal it today. One figure represents 
an angel flying away with a message, another one on the 
outer wall has such a sweet smile, it looks as though the smile 







DONKEY LOADED WITH WEEDS 
FOR FUEL NEAR DAMASCUS 



J 



A TALE SIX THOUSAND MILES LONG. 27 

was for you. All these figures and carvings are a part of the 
walls of the building. The foliage upon the capitals of the 
pilasters is so finely carved that we took straws and passed 
through, wondering how such delicate work could be done. 
As we walked around our feet were treading over the ashes 
of many a warrior and priest. Just by a large window (no 
glass in any of the windows) is buried the heart of Kinp 
Robert Bruce. Here the keeper and his wife, as we were about 
the only visitors this early in the day, told us a touching in- 
cident. He said : "Yesterday a lady now visiting in Glasgow, 
but living in California, brought to me a flower, I think she 
called it a poppy, and wanted to put it on the little stone 
marking where the heart of Bruce is buried. She said she 
had been a widow four years, and this flower had grown on 
her husband's grave. She had just sent to her servant in 
California for it." He further said : "We picked a little 
wreath of ivy you see climbing over the wall to encircle the 
flower and put it on the stone. She said she was coming again 
in the evening, when the moon was shining, but I did not 
see her again, nor do I see the flower." I said : "It rained 
hard yesterday evening in Edinburgh." He replied : "That 
must have kept her away, as it rained here, with heavy wind. 
I presume she has gone. She was staying at the hotel." We 
looked about. Over in the dirt he picked up a little wet. 
wilted, faded flower, and knowing that I was from California. 
he said : "Is this it ?" I took the little bedraggled thing. 
Was it a poppy? Turning it over, on just one petal I saw 
the color, one little bright golden spot, no larger than a tear 
drop. I said: "It is a golden poppy and from California." 
With loving tenderness we replaced the flower. My heart 
was full. I walked out into the cloisters. I paced to and 
fro, wrapt in reverie. I did not even know the lady's name. 
I repelled the thought of ascertaining her name on the hotel 
register. What an orchid of excellence in thought and af- 
fection. What a blossom of sentiment. Perchance the tiny 
spot of golden brightness that I saw in identifying the poppy 
was kept by the lady's tear of sympathy. Oh, sentiment, • 



/ 



28 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

talismanic charm thou art, eclipsing in real worth any crown of 
jewels ever worn. How proud I was that from beneath the 
sunny skies of Golden California such bright, sweet, tender 
and loving sentiment grew, and typified by this golden poppy, 
was carried 6000 miles away to blossom and rest over the last 
resting place of the heart of the most heroic of all Scottish 
kings. With another look at the roofless, yet beautiful walls 
of Melrose Abbey, where each interstice is simply crushed oys- 
ter shell, we walked back to the station and jumped on the fast 
London express, and in the next chapter will tell you some- 
thing of England. 



II. 
%ondon, 9arh and *£ermani{. 

The car we entered at Melrose had a corridor on one side 
and doors leading into compartments first and third class. 
On an electric button was this notice : "An attendant will ac- 
company you to the dining car." It was vestibuled and had 
two elegant dining cars in front, first and third class. The 
cars were long and handsome inside and out. 

The train fairly flew across the country and by all the small 
stations. The country for the first hour or two was very 
beautiful, with large trees and just uneven enough to charm 
the eye every way one looks. 

The conductor came along, saying, "Did you book here?" 
meaning Melrose. All ticket-selling places are marked book- 
ing stations and when we want a ticket we simply say we want 
to book to destination. 

At Ravenswood and from there to St. Boswell's, at this 
season, is the best looking farming country I ever saw. Har- 
wick is a good-sized city. Then we came to quite a stretch 
of country, treeless and looking poor and wet. Such country 
is called moors. I saw patches of bright looking flowers now 
and then and a Scotch lady in our compartment said they 
were "ling flowers." We soon came to the river Eden, and 
for some distance, twisting and winding along at express train 
speed, we followed downward the course of this river. For 
the first time since landing at Glasgow, the clouds began to 
look as one sees them in winter time in California, distinct 
clouds and patches of blue sky. Everywhere in this country 



30 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

if the weather is cloudy and threatening, which seems to be 
the rule, you will hear after the usual morning salutation, "It 
is a dull morning," or "It looks dull today." 

The millions of people in the British isles who do not travel 
to other countries have no conception or idea as to distance or 
heat, as Americans do, and the masses travel very little — just 
little, cheap holiday excursions to some near-by place at long 
intervals. (I am not speaking of the commercial classes.) 

At Carlisle we were on English soil. For many miles the 
country was rocky and there were many stone dykes, used 
as fences. There are so many new and pleasing features of 
home life and scenery to see on an English railway that each 
hour is a delight and pleasure. At Hellifield we changed 
from our London train to a train for Manchester, passing 
through Bradford, another large city. From Bradford to 
Manchester the manufacturing plants are so thick that it is 
almost like one city. A peculiarity about them all is that each 
factory has a very tall brick chimney and everywhere they 
seemed like tall monuments, except they represent the pres- 
ent and not the past. The houses are also mostly made of 
brick, not stone, as in Scotland. . 

The train ran very fast, with scarcely any stops. At times 
there was a perfect labyrinth of tracks, with other roads 
crossing, but never on the same grade. No ringing of loco- 
motive bells or whistling, as there are no crossings, always 
under or over the track. We did not stay long in Manchester. 
We concluded it was a thrifty, manufacturing city and its 
ship canal, recently completed to the sea, is giving its busi- 
ness men and interests a new impetus. 

Shortly after reaching Manchester we again took train for 
Liverpool. Interesting at every turn and step in manufactur- 
ing, farming and gardening, with glimpses of English rural 
life, is the country seen traveling between these large cities, 
if one is a close observer. Just before sundown we arrived 
in Liverpool. We soon secured a comfortable room in a 
hotel and retired early. The landlady, a good motherly 
woman, in showing me where my room was, said, "Do you 



LONDON, PARIS AND GERMANY. 31 

know how to turn off the gas?" I replied, "I think I do." 
We found Liverpool a well built, good looking city of 
about 500,000 population. Many of the larger trucks bad 
horses harnessed one ahead of the other, thus driving along with 
the load tandem fashion. We walked to the water front on 
the Mersey. What wonderful docks ! Some of them floating, 
held in place with great chains, all built of solid masonry. 
There is an elevated railway running along the water front 
for several miles. We climbed the stairway and rode back 
and forth. There were many ships, large and small, an- 
chored either in the Mersey or lying along the piers. We saw 
immense dry docks large enough to take in the largest ves- 
sels, some of them occupied by ships undergoing repair. On 
the city side of all this distance were immense warehouses, 
filled with all the different products of the world. We walked 
out on one of the outer piers, connected with many other 
piers, all forming a continuous sea front, apparently rising 
and falling with the tide. Here ships from all parts of the 
world take and land passengers and their luggage. While 
standing there a large steamer from the Isle of Man landed 
many passengers. Then came a large ship, the Westernland, 
and for nearly an hour we stood there with hundreds of other 
people, watching a continuous row of passengers passing on 
board, all bound for Philadelphia. This was an American 
steamship, large and handsome looking. We were loth to 
leave such a scene of animation. We went to a booking office 
and purchased tickets for London. 

The weather was delightful and we chose the Midland r 
to see the best scenery. Even the railroad embankments are 
grassed over and hay mown on them — no waste anywhere. If 
a side hill is being washed or cut away, a stone embankment 
is built to protect it. American reapers were in some field- 
work cutting their corn (oats). 

An English lady in our compartment, at a small town, as 
our train flew along, said, "Look at those Gypsies." 
scene, a few old covered wagons, with poor horses, looked 
very much the same as I have seen them camped on the 



32 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

river bottom at Los Angeles. Gypsies, I think, are about 
the same everywhere. Instead of a train boy coming along 
to ask you to buy anything, especially fruit, the arrangement on 
this road was very fine. At every large town where we 
stopped, there came a nicely dressed boy along the side of 
the train, with fruit, scones and sometimes cups of tea on a 
tray, just telling you what he had in a quiet way. You 
simply opened the car door and beckoned to him if you wanted 
to purchase. 

We ran through some very wild scenery, steep, rocky hills, 
deep cuts and long tunnels. This hilly country had scarcely 
any trees, yet abounded in rock, and there was considerable 
stone quarrying. After passing Derbyshire the country flat- 
tens out. I think the entire southeastern part of England is a 
flat country, with very few hills and ridges, as compared with 
the rest. At Leicester our compartment became crowded, 
fourteen, small and large. The porter at the station said, 
"Only one portion today," meaning only one section of the 
train. There are plenty of guides and porters at each sta- 
tion, all dressed in uniform, who answer all questions and 
direct passengers in changing trains. 

We saw a few apple trees, while in front of the houses 
were nasturtiums, marigolds, pansies and many other flowers. 
The change from country to city, as we entered London, was 
quite marked, and then one cannot see much from the train, 
as in tunnels, 'under the streets it passes to the station. 

At a little after 3 o'clock p. m. we alighted from the train 
at Saint Pancras station, and were in the largest city in the 
world. We summoned a hansom and were swiftly driven to 
the Waverly hotel, and found a nice room, with double beds, 
electric lights, well furnished and with three large double 
windows. This room, with breakfast, costs us one crown 
each per day. 

We took a long walk on Oxford street to Hyde Park 
that evening and were wonderfully impressed with the crowded 
street, the masses hurrying to and fro, the two-story omni- 
buses filled with people, the cabs everywhere flying about. 





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STREET SCENE IN LONDON 



LONDON, PARIS AND GERMANY. 33 

On an area of several square miles in the very heart of Lon- 
don there are no street cars, only lines running outside this 
center. There are no elevated roads anywhere. There is, 
as called, a two-penny tube, an underground railway, running 
in portions of the city. This is the one Mr. Yerkes of Chi- 
cago is trying to manipulate. The next morning, having read 
in the papers that the Shah of Persia would take a train at 
Charing Cross station, we concluded to see a little of royalty. 
No one can get their regular breakfasts at hotels until about 8 
o'clock. After breakfast we walked in the direction of 
Charing Cross station for the purpose of seeing the Shah. 
We sauntered leisurely along, feeling as rich as a king, look- 
ing at the sights of London. We came to Trafalgar square, 
and while looking at the statues of four large bronzed copper 
lions I happened to remember that I left our money at the 
hotel between the mattresses, with the door unlocked. I told 
Elmer, and in a cool, matter-of-fact, nonchalant way he said : 
"That ends the whole business and finishes the trip." We 
had two sovereigns, one-half of a crown, a few pennies and 
some halfpence with us. We immediately hailed a hansom, 
telling the driver to quickly drive us to the hotel. He cracked 
his whip and we were off. It seemed to me that that particu- 
lar horse was the slowest one in all London, and that at 
every turn everybody else was in our driver's way. What 
we could see did not interest us any more. Oh, how slow 
we seemed to go ! We reached the hotel, and leaving Elmer 
to pay the driver, I quickly ran up the stairs, instead of ring- 
ing up the elevator. I reached the room. What expectation 
as I reached in my hand. Hopefulness I still had left. It was 
there intact. Turning to Elmer, an aphorism I sometimes use- 
in California came forth involuntarily, "It is better to be born 
lucky than rich." We walked out this time towards the 
Bank of England, over a mile away. We had lost interest in 
the Shah. How curious human nature is. Will we ever un- 
derstand ourselves? Are we not all surprised at times, caus- 
ing us to wonder at our changeable moods? 
As we reached Threadneedle street, we walked all the way 



34 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

around the Bank of England, looking curiously in at the dif- 
ferent entrances, where pompous looking and richly uniformed 
men were pacing to and fro, like sentinels. Walking around 
this bank (covering three acres) seemed to change us again. 
In our feelings we were richer than any depositor in the 
Bank of England. Consulting our watches, we concluded 
that we might yet have time to see the Shah. We jumped on 
an omnibus running along the Strand, and in about thirty 
minutes came in sight of the open square in front of Charing 
Cross station. It was filled with people, with just room for 
cabs and omnibuses to pass. We hastily alighted and worked 
our way up to the edge of a strip of pavement, where sawdust 
had been thrown. 

Everybody was on the eve of expectation. "Here he comes," 
one sang out. First came an outrider or two, then ten or 
twelve men on black steeds, all richly caparisoned, the riders 
with armor on, rifles and swords, plumes, gold and red stripes, 
all looking to me as I would picture knights of the medieval 
ages. Then came the carriages. The leading one contained 
the Shah, his interpreter, an English Lord and another Per- 
sian. The remaining carriages contained his suite accompany- 
ing him. All the Persians, as far as I noticed, had long, fierce- 
looking moustaches. The coachmen were dressed in red 
coats, white trousers, black silk hats, trimmed in gold — the 
usual traditional style. On alighting from the carriage to 
take the railway train, a red velvet carpet was spread along 
the platform for the Shah and his suite to walk on. 

We had seen the Shah of Persia. 

One Sunday afternoon we attended Sabbath School in City 
Road Chapel, where John Wesley used to preach. No adults 
in attendance and not over sixty present, mostly children. 
More singing than teaching; rather a poor affair. I learned 
afterwards that some of the older people were there but had 
a class service in another room, at the same hour. 

In the evening we crossed London bridge to attend the 
Metropolitan Temple (Spurgeon's). There is a little yard in 
front, and wide steps leading up to the main doors. I was 



LONDON, PARIS AND GERMANY. 35 

surprised on arrival to find hundreds of people filling this 
space waiting for the doors to open. An open-air meeting 
was also in progress. We went to a little side door and told 
the keeper we were strangers. He let us in, enabling us to 
choose our seat in the first gallery. The room is built in the 
form of an oblong circle, with two galleries all around, one 
tier above the other. The first gallery had six rows of seats 
and the upper one five. The preacher's pulpit was high 
enough so that when preaching his head was on a level with 
the center of the first gallery. In a very few minutes that 
great church, seating 3700 people, filled up. No instrumental 
music of any kind ; in front of the pulpit, a little lower down 
and facing the preacher, was room for fifteen or twenty sing- 
ers, which was the choir. Just back of the pulpit and only as 
wide, was a tier of seats up across the gallery for the elders 
of the church. A door in the rear where they had a prayer 
meeting before the service gave them entrance. Still the peo- 
ple came. The pulpit stairs, all the steps in the aisles of the 
galleries were full and some of the windows had people sit- 
ting in them. No more room, yet hundreds more came and 
stood up during the service. There were over 4000 people 
present. 

Not a stained glass window, no memorial ones, nor any 
needless ornamentation. It was a right sort of a church, and 
that kind brings the people. The pastor, Mr. Spurgeon's son. 
was away. A Mr. MacNeil from Scotland preached. I think 
he is a Presbyterian. There were plenty of hymn books. 
Everybody had one. Everybody sang that could or wanted 
to. I did not miss the instrumental music. The preaching was 
excellent. I only wish I had time and space to picture it — 
it was about doubting Thomases, full of illustrations. How 
strange it is that the preaching that draws and holds people 
is always full of incidents of every-day life, woven into the 
sermon for illustration. 

In the morning we had attended service at the City Temple. 
The pastor, whom you all know, has a world-wide reputation. 
Dr. Parker was absent and Mr. William L. Watkinson, .1 



36 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

Wesleyan Methodist, preached. The large audience was so 
still that I wondered. Not a sound except an occasional 
cough caused by a cold. The music was grand, both instru- 
mental and vocal. As is the custom here, everybody sits 
down when the benediction is given. A little box with a 
groove in it is passed for the offerings, and the rattle of the 
coins as they drop in is like the patter of large drops of rain 
on a roof. We visited St. Paul's Cathedral, the largest 
Protestant church in the world; no service when we were 
present. It is very imposing, stately, stiff, ecclesiastical look- 
ing, full of statuary, costly windows, enormous stone pillars. 
I was weary and in one of the seats commenced reading a 
paper. A clerically dressed gentleman came along and said : 
"Against the regulations, sir, to read a paper." I replied with 
much courtesy, "Thank you, sir," putting the paper in my 
pocket. 

We went to the Kensington Museum and in the Indian de- 
partment saw much clever work in models of houses. We saw 
also many old tombs, and pillars from religious temples, some 
of them dating back hundreds of years. How eager man 
seems to be in every age, to erect something to remind other 
people coming after him of his presence. We saw carved 
on stone their manner of catching wild elephants down to 
the second century, represented by tying a female elephant to 
a tree, which calls out the male elephants. Then they are 
represented as fighting, and Indians tying their hind legs to 
a tree with strong ropes. Aristotle, long before Christ, spoke 
of this manner of catching wild elephants in his writings. 

We went into a Persian room and saw silk woven with 
threads of gold, called "Susura" work. The Japanese and 
Chinese weave differently. We saw a Persian carpet, the 
museum having just paid 2500 pounds sterling for it. What 
harmony in the weaving ! In this fine weaving it is said the 
foreman sits in the center singing a song. Each weaver as he 
hears the song, works according to the notes, even to the dip- 
ping of his yarn into the different dyes. Their language has 
very many half tones, while ours has but few. The name, "The 




OLD SITE OF MEMPHIS 

DURING NILE OVERFLOW 



LONDON, PARIS AND GERMANY. 37 

Holy Carpet," indicated that this one was woven by singing 
a religious song. I went into the Chinese gallery. I saw one 
screen costing iooo pounds. "Beauty," did I say? "Yes," yet 
it rather seemed to be a dream from fairy land. I went int<> 
the Japanese gallery and I saw an eagle made of iron which 
cost iooo pounds. An American iron maker, even if he had 
skill, would fail in patience. I saw an incense burner made 
for a Japanese temple, so elaborate that the museum authori- 
ties paid 1586 pounds for it. Many other things we saw in 
works of art and beauty. Truly one half of the world knows 
but little of what the other half is doing. 

We also went into the British Museum. We saw mummies 
as old as Abraham ; and one man in a stone coffin who lived 
on the earth before Abraham's time. We were much inter- 
ested in the Rosetta stone, discovered at the mouth of the 
Nile in 1799, and through its discovery, and the writing on 
its surface, it was possible to read the language on Egyptian 
monuments and tombs. This stone furnished the long looked- 
for key. 

There were old parchments of Scripture and much papyri, 
some of it years B. C, the ink looking fresh and bright. We 
also went into the Guildhall, which is in the center of the 
old city where great titles are conferred. We are quite sure 
that we at last found the largest book in the world, an album 
six feet long, three and one-half feet wide and about eight 
inches thick, weighing seven hundred pounds. There were 
brick taken from the palace of Nimrod, large carved stones 
from Nineveh, dating before Jonah's time. 

We were in the Tate gallery of art. Such pictures ! It 
seemed that we were in a new world, and never saw art be- 
fore. Sir Edwin Landseer's own work of animals, famous 
the world over was here — several pictures. Artists, would 
that I were one ! 

We went to the Tower of London. Such an array of ar- 
mored Knights, horses and kings ! Mute and motionless they 
stand, representing how some of our forefathers lived. The 
use of guns and powder rendered all this work useless. We 



38 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

saw where many were beheaded, and could the old stones in 
the walls talk, what strange, weird stories they could tell, 
because it is true as said, "Truth is stranger than fiction." 

We climbed the monument built in memory of the great 
fire of 1666. For miles and miles the city lay, as far as 
our eyes could see either way. Up from the depths of this 
great city below, there came a sound as of waves on a rocky 
shore. A mighty city where it is said, "one dies every five 
minutes." We stood on London Bridge and as we saw the 
multitude passing and repassing, it seemed to us that the 
procession would never end — yet it began centuries before 
we were born. 

We walked into Waterloo Street Station. For an hour 
we watched a continual line of hansoms driving up to unload 
passengers with their luggage, who were about to take an 
express train for Southampton, there to go on board a steamer 
bound for Africa. There were at times a dozen hansoms 
busy unloading their passengers at once. Said a young Eng- 
lishman standing by me, "I was born and raised in London, 
and this sight is as new to me as to you. I am just waiting 
for my passport as I go to South Africa." It was a rare scene 
we witnessed, even for London. Their luggage and ways 
were not American. One evening we took a train to Syden- 
ham, where the Crystal Palace is. In front of the palace 
was to be a fine display of fireworks in honor of the Shah 
of Persia's attendance. I never saw better fireworks. The 
immense grounds in front were lighted up by one-half a 
million gas jets, taking one hundred miles of piping to place 
them in position. We found many thousands of people and 
military bands playing. These many gas jets were of many 
bright colors, the electrical fountains illuminated with a 
variety and change of color. Was it not a fairy scene? For 
an hour the display of fireworks, the sending up of balloons, 
the rockets of many colors, the set pieces — among them was 
a picture of the Shah of Persia and another the coronation 
scene — automobiles running a race, and many others. Will 
we ever forget the scene? 



LONDON, PARIS AND GERMANY. 39 

We visited the houses of Parliament and saw much gold 
and glitter. Many costly pictures were there representing 
great men and deeds, all in English history. The House of 
Lords — the gilded chamber, it is called — with the throne for 
the King to sit on when he opens Parliament, the frescoes, 
richly stained windows, highly decorated walls and ceiling, 
could we but feel out of place? 

The House of Commons, a little larger and as imposing 
in appearance, did it excite our admiration? No, we art- 
plainer people. On each side of the houses are lobbies, and be- 
tween the two, at the end of the lobbies, is Central Hall, 
octagonal in shape, and it has a very rich Mosaic pavement. 
It is also wonderfully adorned with decorations, frescoes and 
statuary- As we walked out, "Big Ben," a bell in the clock 
tower, pealed forth in sonorous tones the time of day; a 
bell that in the night time, when the city is a little quiet, 
is heard over a large part of London. We walked to Buck- 
ingham Palace. At the gates sentinels in rich uniform were 
pacing to and fro. It is not a very nice looking palace in 
front. We rode one day out to Greenwich, and walked or 
sat under the trees in Greenwich Park. Chestnut trees, the 
largest seven feet in diameter, large elms, oaks, mountain ash 
covered with red berries, and thorn trees, resembling in leaf 
and color, only not so large, the fine leafed oak of California. 
We were 155 feet above sea level and could look for miles 
down the Thames, with ship docks and warehouses as far 
as we could see. A herd of deer were quietly grazing by our 
side. Green grass, with wild flowers peeping out of the 
grass, with many cultivated flowers about the yards and in 
the park, with weather like that of Redlands in the winter — 
was it not enjoyable? 

We hunted up the little old crooked street that Charles 
Dickens wrote about, where Old Curiosity Shop is located, 
built 300 years ago ; on through Billingsgate fish market, won- 
dering where all the fish came from ; went to the house where 
John Wesley lived and died. We were in his study. The 
bookcase he used is there, about seven feet wide, with glass 



40 A CALIFORN1AN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

doors at the top and secretary style at the bottom. His con- 
ference chair and study chair sit there. His library is not 
there; it is in Bristol, Kingwood and Richmond. We also 
saw one little tiny lock of his hair and the old collection 
plates used in the old chapel. We were in the bedroom where 
he died. A painting on the wall representing the death scene 
is untrue. There were but eight present when he died. We 
saw his bureau with the secret drawer; the old eight day 
clock, built in the time of Wesley, by a refugee from the con- 
tinent, running when Wesley died in years ago, and still 
running, ticking the time away. We heard it strike three 
o'clock on the afternoon of August 26th. There is nobody 
living that ever saw John Wesley, or that ever heard him 
preach. Yet, could this old clock talk, it would say, "I saw 
and heard him and my ticking is just the same today." We 
saw his pen and the penholder he wrote with and many of 
his old letters. He had a little room just back of his bed- 
room, which he used for secret prayer. We went into this 
room. 

Just back of the church he is buried, and by his side lies 
Adam Clark. His ancestry can be traced back to the tenth 
century. There is only one living descendant by the name 
of Wesley, and he belongs to the Theistic church. We went 
into the church and saw the pulpit Wesley used, which is still 
in use, though it has been cut down about one-half. There 
are new pews and a new floor. The pillars supporting the 
gallery are new and cost one hundred pounds each. They 
are of marble and were donated by different countries. The 
keyboard of the organ is on the floor in front of the pulpit, 
while the organ is in the gallery in two parts, one on each 
side of the church, fully fifty feet from the organist. 

Just across the road from Wesley's church and house is 
the Bunnehill cemetery. A curious sign at the entrance reads 
thus : "Reserved as a place of recreation for the public.'' 
Over two hundred years ago, at the time of the great plague in 
London, the victims were buried in this ground. 
'Almost all the land and houses in England and Scotland 



" — 







THE NILE AT ASSOUAN 
dec. 10th 1902 



LONDON, PARIS AND GERMANY. 41 

are under what is called the "feu" system. The titled men 
usually own all the land in great estates and the farms and 
ground for the houses are rented out on an average of 
about three pounds an acre. However, leases in Scotland 
are perpetual, while in England the usual time is 99 years. 
For this reason farm improvements are usually better in 
Scotland. 

Everybody is polite and say "thank you," with a rising 
inflection to everything you do. There is a heavy fine in 
London for "hollering" on the streets, so all the newsboys 
and men selling papers have a large placard fastened in front 
of them, noting the principal news, the headings and other 
leading features. And all are quiet. 

The radius of free delivery is ten miles from the general 
post office. Think of it, twenty miles across the city each way. 

We have not seen an American pie in all the British Isles. 
I believe that if some American lady would commence mak- 
ing them in London she could make millions of dollars, as 
well as of pies. 

You are expected in Europe to get your breakfast at the 
hotel. In sitting down to the table, we have a small plate 
for bread and butter, and there is one dessert spoon, four 
knives and three forks to each sitting. You have porridge 
first, if you want it, then either of four kinds of fish, then 
bacon or ham and eggs or roast beef if you prefer. No po- 
tatoes, plenty of bread and butter, tea or coffee and lots of 
style. If your bill is not paid while eating the waiter will 
put it under a little plate. 

We have booked a passage of nearly 4000 miles of travel 
on the European continent, intending to visit all the capitals. 
The passage cost us eleven pounds, nineteen shillings and six- 
pence each, about one and one-half cents a mile. We leave 
England and Scotland with regret. We like the people and 
many of their ways. This Saturday morning we have our 
luggage ready, are taken by an omnibus to the Victoria sta- 
tion. 

As our train started, I caught sight of the Prince of 



42 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

Wales' train standing at the station. At times in leaving the 
city the grade was so high that we were even with the roofs 
of the houses; and then again we were in tunnels under the 
streets. As we emerged from the city we were again charmed 
with English scenery. 

At the station of Purly, we saw whole rows of new 
houses and many English oaks. Wild blackberries were get- 
ting ripe and we envied the chance of picking them. As we 
neared the coast the trees became scarce and there were long, 
hilly slopes of country, mostly grazing land, covered with a 
mantle of green. Winding in and about them we ran along 
a wharf and walked across the pier to a steamer. 

We were in Newhaven, just a little hamlet, yet the little 
harbor was protected by a stone breakwater. On a hill facing 
the ocean we saw cannon mounted, and troops stationed, all 
ready to defend any invasion. Our train was a long one and 
several hundred passengers from it crowded on to the steamer. 
Nearly all of them were French or Dutch, not many speaking 
our language. All were extremely well dressed. Truly we 
were getting away from England and English speaking peo- 
ple. 

. The sea was calm, the wind light, and somber gray clouds 
overhung sea and land. 

The first and second class passengers were divided like the 
sheep and the goats. Nobody wanted to stay in the stuffy 
saloons, therefore nearly all were on deck. And as there 
were not seats enough, many had to stand. A few square- 
rigged sailing vessels and two steamers were all we saw in 
crossing. 

We arrived at Dieppe, passing a few fishing sloops, 
a yacht and several small steamers as we came into our 
slip or pier, almost facing the ocean. What a change from 
sober, staid old England ! Hundreds of boys, men, women 
and girls were on the wharf, dressed in all sorts of costumes. 
Some wore hats and all were wildly gesticulating. Surely 
this is "La Belle France." 

Dieppe is a city of considerable size. We were ushered 



LONDON, PARIS AND GERMANY. 43 

into a large room on the wharf, where our baggage was ex- 
amined by military-looking custom house officers. We soon 
had ours chalk-marked and passed directly from the wharf 
into a train of cars standing on the street, waiting for us. 
The excitable French people were roped off and the other side 
of the vestibuled corridor train was locked. We entered 
the cars and heard everybody speaking French. Then we be- 
gan to realize what it is to be in a foreign country. Soon 
the train started for Paris. There was not room for all the 
passengers to sit, and many were compelled to stand in the 
corridors. The train started slowly at first, up a street, the 
people waving their hats, and some shouting "au revoir." 

The French locomotive is very unlike an English one. It 
whistled loud and often over the entire way to Paris. Soon 
we were passing along between silver birch trees, and by the 
side of green meadows. We saw many apple trees, doubt- 
less the Normandy pippin. The churches we saw all seemed 
to be Catholic, and the cemeteries about them had more iron 
crosses and more ornamental iron work than tombstones. 
The land was quite hilly near the coast, though there were 
many trees, with many nice looking homes nestled among 
them. Some were of brick, with tiled roofs, older ones of 
stone, with thatched roofs. All the land was under culti- 
vation. 

Full of romance, interwoven into its history, is this part of 
Normandy. We reached Rouen, a city of nearly 400,000 peo- 
ple, forty miles from Dieppe. As our train wound along 
on the hillside we had a good view of the city. We could 
easily locate the cathedrals. On a board in the station were 
posted letters and telegrams for unknown persons. 

Leaving Rouen, there are large areas of land used for 
gardening. How neat they looked, men and women working 
in them, yet at this time the sun was setting, partially ob- 
scured by clouds. On we sped, reaching Vernon in another 
forty miles, beautifully situated on the Seine. We were now 
in a flat, open country, given over to farming, with some 
manufactories about the towns. The lingering twilight lighted 



44 A CALIFORN1AN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

up the hovel of the poor peasant, as well as the elegant 
chateau of the rich. It gilded them alike in colors more 
lovely than any artist can paint ; the moving train, the grace- 
ful birch and elm trees, the fields of corn (oats) being har- 
vested, the cattle grazing in the small pastures, the hay gath- 
ered into small, pointed stacks, the birds hunting for their 
homes at night; and as the train ambled along our eyes caught 
glimpses of the silvery Seine, the ever-pleasing green of the 
meadows and the bright gleam of wild flowers from field 
and dale. Was it not a scene to enrapture one? 

From here to Paris the shades of night cut off our view. 
We arrived in the_ Paris station at 8:15 p. m., and struggled 
along in the crowd through the station. We called a "Vic- 
toria," when a man grabbed Elmer's satchel and persistently 
kept it. He could talk English; said it was best to get a cab 
on the street outside, got one, and as the cab drove up we 
got in. I gave him a few centimes, and he said he was "ye 
interpreter," so I gave him half a franc. Our cab driver had 
been directed to drive us to Hotel St. Romaine, and we soon 
arrived there. We had two francs sorted out for the cab 
fare and twenty centimes as the driver's fee. I ran into the 
hotel, telling Elmer to keep the cab. I rang the bell and a 
chamber maid came running as I walked up the stairs. I 
wanted rooms, holding up two fingers. "Je Madame," I 
said, "two Messiurs." She talked away in French, and see- 
ing that I did not understand, motioned me down stairs, and 
at another entrance called a waiter who could talk English 
a little, and we hired two rooms. Motioning to Elmer, he 
paid the cabman, who demurred and wanted one-half franc 
more. A policeman came along and made him move off. 
We had paid the regular fare and the usual fee to the driver. 
We were in Paris. 

We walked out on the boulevards; the cafes have a line of 
tables and chairs on the sidewalks. Hundreds of people sat 
at these tables in the open air, sipping all sorts of drinks. 
Summer evenings, a good part of Paris is out of doors, whole 



LONDON, PARIS AND GERMANY. 45 

families sitting on the sidewalks. This picture we saw at 10 
p. m. the evening of our arrival. 

Sunday morning we started out to find some church. We 
found that we were only a little ways from the Tuilleries 
and their gardens, just about in the center of the city. We 
could find no Protestant church, so we enquired for the largest 
Catholic one. We called it "Notre Dame." Nobody seemed 
to know it by that name, but called it as we would to leave 
off the "e" on the last word. We found the cathedral. A beg- 
gar sat at the door; just inside a nun stood holding a collec- 
tion plate. A little farther along a sinister-looking monk 
sat behind a little desk on a raised platform with a variety of 
coins on a plate. As I went by he pushed the plate towards 
me, with an appealing look. I walked along. Services were 
in progress. We soon discovered that everybody paid to get 
in. A temporary light fence was set up with a narrow 
entrance. A boy stood on one side and a nun on the other. 
It was amusing to see strangers go in and the boy or nun 
would speak to them. No one passed those portals to take 
part in the worship without paying. However, there was a 
wide walk all the way around the services, behind the mon- 
strous pillars, and nobody to ask pay. We walked around. 
In one open space behind the services and leading to them, 
a man dressed in a showy uniform stood and with a cane 
motioned back any one passing. There were more people 
walking around than went in to the services. Many of them 
stopped at the different shrines and bowed low in worship. 
The stained glass, the statuary, and the size of the cathedral 
are on a grand scale. 

As we walked back to the hotel, stores, cafes, building 
trades, street work — everything was in fulll swing ; no regard 
for Sunday ; well dressed, gay, vivacious, light-hearted and 
merry all seemed to be. Sunday afternoon, as we could look 
over in the Rue Tivoli from our windows, we saw passing 
each way great crowds of people with cabs and automobiles, 
even in the rain, as all Paris makes Sunday afternoon one 
grand holiday. 



46 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

Monday morning we went over to Versailles on the cars. 
It is about twelve miles southeast of Paris. The weather was 
very fine — a bright, cool September day. The train circled a 
range of hills most of the way; plenty of trees, shrubbery and 
flowers, and new houses. Brick is used in building and red 
tile for the roofs. There are iron balconies in front of many 
of the buildings. Everywhere in Paris, if not an iron balcony 
in front, then an iron railing crosses each window. The win- 
dows are hung on a pair of hinges like double doors, and each 
window is covered with a lace curtain. The people open these 
windows, sew, read and sit in or by them. There are out- 
side blinds, usually open, only closed when it storms. This 
description applies to nearly all of Paris, except the public 
buildings and now and then a larger block. The whole of 
Paris is composed of buildings from six to seven stories high, 
quite uniform in appearance, with usually a sloping roof, 
partially Mansard in style. I think there is a law compelling 
owners to paint every ten years, therefore the city has a 
bright, neat appearance in keeping with the looks of the 
people. 

We saw many locust trees in the yards on our way to Ver- 
sailles. The drives, the fountains when playing, the artificial 
lakes, the shaded walks ,with statuary in many places — as we 
walked about the immense palace grounds at Versailles — were 
a surprise to us. We were disappointed that the palace was 
closed as we wanted to see the Hall of Mirrors, where the 
King of Prussia was crowned Emperor of Germany in Janu- 
ary, 1871. 

We returned to Paris in the afternoon. We visited the 
Eiffel tower and ascended by elevator to the top. There had 
been a sharp shower of rain, clearing the smoke away, and 
the clouds also. We were about 1000 feet high. The sun was 
shining brightly, and just late enough in the afternoon to catch 
nearly every building. What a view ! A city of about three 
millions of people, said to be "the finest looking city in the 
world," was spread out before us. The rays of this sparkling 
sunshine lighted up spire, tower, dome, monuments, parks, 




ODDEST PYRAMID IN EGYPT 

NBAS MEMPHIS 



LONDON, PARIS AND GERMANY. 47 

boulevards lined with trees, Napoleon's tomb richly gilded, 
old cathedrals, statuary, government barracks with troops 
drilling, square miles of buildings where streets are too nar- 
row even at this eagle's height to see, triumphal arches — one 
of them the largest in the world, and on the only elevation 
in Paris — broad, spacious avenues, twelve of them diverging 
from one point, and winding in and through them all, just 
like a ribbon of blue spanned by thirty curved bridges is the 
river Seine. Many pleasure steamers, laden with passengers, 
steaming along, nothing like it in all the world ! Six great 
railways come into Paris, and we could trace their trains 
and locate their magnificent stations in different sections of 
the city. Many times we walked around the top of Eiffel 
tower. I have been to the top of Washington monument 
and those of you who have seen that tall marble column, a 
landmark all over Washington, can imagine a little of our 
elevation, as we were nearly twice as high. Reluctantly we 
came down to earth again. As we left, the smoke and haze of 
a great city was gathering. 

The veil had been lifted by the sharp shower of rain. Never 
will we catch such a view and of such a city again. 

We left Paris in the morning. While eating breakfast the 
hotel proprietor called a Victoria. As we paid our bill, a 
stamp of ten centimes was added for us to pay for. (In Lon- 
don all bills over two pounds have to be stamped.) The pro- 
prietor had the waiter and porter for us to fee as we started 
off, which we did. 

Our cabman drove us rapidly to the Nord Station, in the 
northern part of the city. We gave him his fee in addition 
to the cab fare. There are many soldiers to be seen on the 
streets of Paris. Our train was ready for Brussels. We 
showed our tickets to the gate-keeper, also to two guards in- 
side, and they directed us to our car. The train was an ele- 
gant one, the best we had seen anywhere. The wide, uphol- 
>tered seats were marked three places and we found a com- 
partment with only four in and took the other two. All the 
passengers were talking, but none in our language. As our 



-* 



48 A CALIF0RN1AN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

train was leaving the city many other trains were coming in. 
A uniformed trainman came in, counting the passengers and 
another behind talking in French to all of us. 

We passed rapidly out of the city, as these through express 
trains make excellent time. Both sides of Vichy we saw miles 
and miles of gardens. No hedges and scarcely any trees. 
What trees there were are planted on the sides of the nar- 
row roads, and trimmed for many feet upwards. In looking 
sideways across the country and under these trees it seemed 
like looking on a mirage. The peasants, both men and women, 
were working in the fields. Every inch of ground was culti- 
vated, yet such little patches of a kind in one place. Then 
came forests of small trees, all in full leaf, then stretches of 
farming lands, then a forest of larger trees ; then came the 
collector of tickets. Taking Elmer's ticket he looked at it, 
then commenced talking to him in an excited way. Elmer 
said, using a California Spanish phrase, "Quien Sabe." Still 
he talked. Finally he wrote something on it commencing 
"Voyageur" and took my ticket, writing the same. I showed 
it to a man sitting beside me, and he laughed and told a lady 
and she laughed and looked at us ; evidently there was trou- 
ble of some sort. Soon we saw by the stations that, while we 
were going to Brussels, we were not on the route our tickets 
read. 

We saw so many tiny little fields over such large stretches 
of country. We passed by the side of a canal. The boats 
were all brown, trimmed with white. There were hundreds 
of them, in some places the whole width of the canal, five 
abreast. The peasants were reaping grain by hand. I saw 
a thresher in a field at work. Our first stop at 10:15 was 
at St. Goneoten. We saw by our tickets we should have been 
at Amiens, many miles to the left. I saw the peasants using 
oxen, two yokes of them in one team. No fences ; cattle 
herded ; a very fine farming country ; soil of light color. 
x\bout 11 o'clock the country looked entirely different; hedges, 
apple trees, more forest, lines of trees at regular spaces, look- 
ing in color like olive trees. Villages built of brick; all new 



LONDON, PARIS AND GERMANY. 49 

houses have bright tile roofs, and the farmers live in the 
villages. At a little after n o'clock we came to the frontier. 
Everybody unlocked and opened their satchels. We did ours. 
The custom house inspector looked at them and passed along. 
The collector came and carried our tickets away. We saw all 
the officials of the station in a bunch talking about our tickets, 
with their hands flying and much excited. Then they came, 
talking vociferously all the time, and wanted us to pay our 
fare to Mons, one franc each. We paid it, wondering what 
they would do with us there. They still kept the tickets. We 
were in Belgium. The train ran swiftly along. At Mons all 
the officials of the station again gathered about our tickets 
and were much excited. They called us out of the car, 
talking to us all the time. We could not understand a word, 
but finding a man that could talk a little English, we told 
him to tell them that "we showed our tickets to three offi- 
cials in Paris and they directed us to take this train." They 
allowed us to enter and the train moved on. We passed 
through a growing forest of small trees. It had been trimmed 
up and thinned out. Every limb as large as a lead pencil 
was corded up for wood. What saving thrift ! Americans 
know not the meaning of the word. 

We ran into Brussels. Nearly all of the buildings are built 
of brick. The conductor carried our tickets to the head official 
of the station. He very politely returned them to us, tearing 
out the ride to Brussels, and we passed out of the gate. We 
had ridden to Brussels over an entirely different route than 
our tickets called for. We went to our banker and changed 
twenty dollars. We got three kinds of money. French is 
used in Belgium, but we had to have money for Holland and 
Germany. There are so many names that we got a book to 
tell us what the values of different kinds were, and tried to 
keep them in separate pockets. Yet, as we purchased any- 
thing, we would still get for change pieces we had not seen. 
Those we put in our vest pockets until we could consult the 
book. 

Brussels is a very interesting city. We saw dogs hitched 



50 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

to carts, usually hitched under, and they would pull as the 
man or woman pushed. When standing still the dog would 
lie down in his harness, under the cart. I saw a hearse all 
encircled with wreaths of beautiful flowers, waiting in the 
street. The house door opened. The entrance was full of 
men and women dressed in black, all wearing that soft, sub- 
dued, far-away look that is always seen at a funeral. Not 
long after we saw a wedding party in carriages, all dressed 
in faultless attire, wearing that bright, bouyant, hopeful look 
usually seen on such occasions. Are not such pictures seen in 
our California? Is not human nature the same everywhere? 
Our surroundings from birth, education, training and tem- 
perament make us seem, and we are, different, yet there is 
a depth in the human heart that is "akin" to all the world. 

We visited the town hall in Brussels. The council cham- 
ber, with its rich tapestry, paintings, its large mirrors and 
the paneled wood work, was a revelation. The different 
rooms, with pictures as real as life, fresco painting, inlaid 
floors of oak and figures in alabaster of exquisite beauty. 
The banqueting hall, with its elaborate chandeliers and its 
paintings were so real that it seemed real life was in them. 
It all seemed to us like some fabled dream. In the picture 
galleries we admired the paintings more than any we saw in 
London. The color, life and animation of these pictures were 
more than real to us. Our very souls were touched, and we 

drank long draughts of their exquisite coloring and beauty 
As we ate our breakfast at the hotel, we admired the dining 

room. It had large windows of stained glass, with the trac- 
ing of flowers and leaves almost as true as nature. 

As we came into Antwerp we passed a line of earth forti- 
fications and saw many soldiers working on them. There 
was mound, moat, some masonry, which probably concealed 
cannon. The earthworks were in all shapes and looked like 
they were preparing passages and concealing mines under- 
ground. We saw the same in passing out of Antwerp, as 
our train circled the city just outside of the fortifications. 
The entire city is being strongly fortified. Antwerp, like 



LONDON, PARIS AND GERMANY. 51 

Brussels and all these Dutch towns, is built of brown brick, 
which is pleasing to the eye, as there, is color in the trim- 
mings. 

I saw women digging potatoes in the fields. Just before 
passing out of Antwerp I saw one man standing on a log 
sawing it through lengthwise. There are surprises at every 
turn in the scenery. One knows not what to expect. We 
soon came to miles and miles of pine forest, planted, seem- 
ingly, as thick as it could grow. None of it large, all sizes, 
the largest is twenty feet high. At Esschen there were bush 
hedges and again farming and forest. Now and then large 
stretches of shrub in full bloom, of a reddish purple. I think 
it was like the heath seen in Scotland. Even among the pine 
trees planted in places this flower blooms, cropping out like red 
velvet woven in among the green trees, and thus creat- 
ing a horoscope of beauty unequalled in any land or clime. 
Our train stopped at Rosendaal. Just then a sharp shower 
of rain, not over two minutes' duration, I heard Elmer 
say, "Those are the largest rain drops I ever saw." For a 
moment they were. 

Then came the custom house officers again. We were in 
Holland. Once more our luggage was passed over another 
frontier. As we left the station there were pastures as far 
as our eyes could reach, and much water alongside the rail- 
road. The cattle looked sleek and fat. Around every farm 
house everything was picked up and looked scrupulously 
clean. I began to think every day was washday, as there seems 
to be large washings hung on the hedges or spread on the 
garden grass each day of our travels. We saw men plow- 
ing in the fields, one handle to the plow, straight beam, and 
with either a roller or a cutter on the forward end of the 
beam. Plowing the little patches was in progress everywhere. 
I think they were sowing winter wheat. We crossed arms 
of the sea on long bridges, with steamers, canal boats and 
some ships in view. 

Our train came into Rotterdam. There are two large sta- 
tions. We concluded to go to the farther one, which was a 



52 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

mistake, as the sequel proved. Rotterdam is one of the most 
romantic old cities in the world. It is as large as San Fran- 
cisco and there are arms of the sea and canals at every 
turn you take. Boats, steamers, ships, yachts and tugs are 
all painted brown, trimmed with white, and such quantities 
are lying all about the city. Canal boats, hundreds of them, 
each having one mast about forty feet high. The quays are 
covered with merchandise. Great bundles of wooden shoes, 
such as many men and women in the country wear. Most 
of the traffic is carried on in strong baskets, particularly fruit, 
vegetables and all small kinds of goods that would be boxed 
in America. In all the countries we have traveled so far in 
Europe there are loads of baskets in place of our boxes. 

We secured rooms at the Victoria hotel. How wonderfully 
common old furniture is. Here was mahogany furniture that 
you would call a treasure. Tapestry on the bed-room 
walls, decorations in the favorite Dutch colors, from brown 
to red in all shades. Our room faced the west, yet as far 
as we could see were tops of buildings and streets, with a 
glimpse of tree and meadow in the distance. We get ac- 
quainted with single individuals from these European coun- 
tries in America and form our opinions of this country on 
that acquaintance, or perhaps on something we may read in 
connection. It cannot be done. One must see these coun- 
tries and catch a glimpse of their life, progress and customs. 
We are surprised at every turn we take in these cities. The 
throngs of well dressed people, their every-day politeness, their 
polished, finish of manner and evident progress in all the af- 
fairs of life. How neat these Dutch people seem to be ! In 
Brussels one morning I saw a maid cleaning the sidewalk 
with a cloth and a bucket of water. She would drag the 
cloth along the walk, then wring it out and repeat the pro- 
cess, walking backwards. Of course she got every particle of 
dirt. She used her hands. Here in Rotterdam I saw them 
cleaning hallways and steps just the same way. Dogs hitched 
to carts are as common here as in Brussels. Patient crea- 
tures, how industrious they are ! Some of the canals have 



LONDON, PARIS AND GERMANY. 53 

grassy, sloping banks, little circles of flowers and rustic- 
looking bridges, gems of beauty. There are no flies. We 
have seen none worth mentioning since we landed in Europe. 
Everybody leaves their windows wide open, and no flies to 
chase out. We have not seen a mosquito or gnat, or any- 
thing to annoy one. There is no perceptible difference be- 
tween the temperature of the morning and evening 
There has been little sunshine; no storms, but light rains of 
short duration nearly every day. There is so little clear 
weather that we have lost all track of the moon and do not 
know where it is. This evening in Rotterdam the sun set 
clear, the first time, except in jfaris, since leaving Scotland 
The stars came out twinkling as merrily as in California. In 
the morning as we ate breakfast we had the finest of wheat 
rolls, the sweetest of butter and a pot of tea that in color 
and brewing would cure an invalid. The rich paneling in 
the dining room, elegant tracing of foliage on the windows, 
and all the appointments were truly Dutch in both char- 
acter and style. It is the rule to pay your bill to the head 
waiter. When through breakfast we asked for the bill. The 
head waiter, dressed in a black cutaway coat, and his shirt 
front of immaculate whiteness, brought the bill on a plate 
of the daintiest of porcelain ware, using a tray, and politely 
laid the plate by our side and walked away. We examined 
the bill, finding it correct, calling for five guilders. We laid 
five and one-half guilders on the plate. He came with the 
politest of bows and carried plate and bill away, soon bring- 
ing back the plate with bill receipted and the correct change, 
two silver coins reading 25 cents. We left one for his fee. 
We found we were at the wrong station; hired a cab for 
one guilder to carry us to the other station ; paid him a 
fee ; gave another fee to an officer in the station to show us 
our right car. We boarded our train for Dusseldorf, Ger- 
many. 

We passed out of the city over canals filled with boats, and 
quaint-looking streets with people in them — typical Dutch 
people. Phlegmatic they may be in temperament, peculiar 



54 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

in custom, and, as it seemed to us, gutteral in speech, yet 
we admired their sturdy character; we saw it impressed up- 
on their faces in lines of determination, boldness and ob- 
stinacy. Yet they are polite and courteous, as Europeans are. 
We crossed a small arm of the sea and were in the coun- 
try, which for miles and miles there is none other like it on 
the earth. This stretch of country is only from eight to 
twelve inches above the water. There is a strip of water 
each side of the railroad where the dirt was taken out to 
construct the track. All the land is laid off in long, narrow 
strips about two hundred yards wide, with ditches of water 
each side from six to eight feet wide. The country roads 
had strips of' water each side where dirt was taken out to 
make them. The houses and yards had ponds of water both 
front and back, where dirt was taken out to give them a 
little elevation. These water strips are the fences. Men 
were fishing in them. One could swim or row around his 
farm before breakfast, or go a-fishing. The four-arm wind- 
mills were lazily turning to give elevation to carry water 
into the house. Was it not picturesque Holland? Herds of 
fat, sleek, different-colored cattle were grazing in the pas- 
tures or lying down chewing their cuds. Pictures of pas- 
toral life everywhere. The little narrow roads have trees 
planted on their edges, with now and then one about the 
houses, and flocks of ducks and geese swimming on the 
pools of water. We saw thrifty, well-kept yards, bunches 
of flowers about the homes, men and women wearing wooden 
shoes, and a church spire and hamlet here and there. Was 
it not all a strange scene to us? We saw canals with the 
water in them higher than the land about, there being dykes 
of earth thrown up to hold the water. Just beyond Utrecht, 
where our train stopped, we saw soldiers drilling and men 
working on some earth fortifications. The country was 
changing to higher land. Some apple trees and some farm- 
ing land, then pine forests just planted, sandy ridges and 
hedges of bushes. In a large field we saw many white can- 
vas tents, tipped with green, just erected. Then again many 



LONDON, PARIS AND GERMANY. 55 

miles of pine forest, from two to four feet high. Then fields 
of heath on one side as far as we could see, one mass of 
reddish purple bloom. As we approached Arnheim, other 
and larger trees became common. These cities are built 
mostly of brown brick, with bright trimmings. Another lady 
got in our compartment at Arnheim, hearing Elmer laugh- 
ing I looked around. The locomotive whistled for start- 
ing three or four times. The lady had a gentleman accom- 
panying her to the car, and each time the whistle sounded, 
the lady, leaning out of . the car door window, was kissing 
the gentleman, the longer the whistle the longer the kiss. 
Elmer was laughing at it, yet I have no doubt the same thing 
occurs in California. 

Just beyond Arnheim there were some meadows, broad, 
nearly treeless, and the greenest ones I ever saw; then be- 
fore crossing a little stream were more earth fortifications 
and men working on them. The houses, scattered along on 

the little farms here, looked very old. Their roofs were cov- 
ered with moss. We reached Emerich. All the passengers 
on the train now got out, carrying their luggage into a build- 
ing to be examined. We were entering Germany. What a 
jabbering and chattering in German and Dutch ! I was sur- 
prised to hear a lady next to me say, "I wonder if anybody 
talks English here." I replied, "I think not." Our. luggage 
again passed examination. The doors were unlocked and 
we entered our train. As the train rolled swiftly away we 
began to look at Germany. 

The farmhouses were larger and more frequent ; better 
land — a magnificent farming country. We saw some hedges 
with red berries on them ; men plowing with one-handled 
plows, but with two wheels in front. At Daisburgh we 
changed trains. We were in an iron center of Germany. 
There were large manufactories for making or working iron 
all about us. There were hundreds of tall chimneys scat- 
tiered all over the country. Just before dark we reached Dus- 
seldorf, and broke our passage again to stay over night and 
see the exhibition — Germany's greatest exposition. 

The next morning we took an electric car and rode to the 



56 A CALIFORNIAN CIRoUNG THE GLOBE. 

exposition. We found a long group of imposing-looking 
buildings scattered along on the banks of the Rhine, and got 
our first glimpse of this river. It was early, yet every car 
was filled; many were on foot or in cabs, until as we 
reached the entrance we had to form in line for our tick- 
ets of admission. What a chance to see the German peo- 
ple! Here were gathered representative German men and 
women from every rank in life. The industrial commercial, 
and educational were represented, and some of the peasantry. 
You have seen at fairs and exhibitions in California, people 
who were awkward and constrained in their appearance, hav- 
ing on their Sunday or holiday clothes. Such people were 
here. They were from the farm and field, not wholly at 
home except in their every-day garb. There were thousands 
of well-dressed people, many of them with their gloves on, 
polished and easy in their manners, representing the pro- 
gressive classes of Germany. The exposition managers had 
no English guide printed, therefore we could only walk about 
and guess at some of the names on the exhibits. The dis- 
play was grand, and one for the German people to be proud 
of. There was no midway performance. It is the greatest 
gathering of Germany's art, industry and manufactures that 
the German people ever held. It would take a whole chap- 
ter to tell you of the many things we saw of interest in these 
few hours. Machines of all kinds, many of them being oper- 
ated. Iron work of every description, from Krupp's display 
of cannon and whole mainshafts of a ship to the smallest 
iron tools. We lingered long among these thousands of 
German people, and were loth to leave, although we heard 
not a word of English. They were talking away, and one 
word occurred so frequently that we soon knew its mean- 
ing, as it came so repeatedly that the occurrence of it was 
as frogs croaking in a pond — "Yah." We have heard the 
word so often that, as Elmer and I talk together, instead of 
saying yes, we catch ourselves saying "Yah." 

Amid the ringing of bells for the midday hour, we took 





Mi mtttmWKmKb 


hBBXB 1 





WESLEY'S GRAVE 

CITY ROAD CHAPEL, LONDON 



LONDON, PARIS AND GERMANY. 57 

car again for the station, and were just in time to catch the 
next train for Cologne, Germany. 

We have learned now, in taking a train, to take our ticket 
and watch and point to the watch as we enter the gates to 
the station. Then the gate-keeper who punches the ticket 
points out the hour and minute our train leaves. We have 
a map and railway time tables printed in English, which we 
purchased in London for two shillings, concerning all of 
Europe and consult these tables at hotels and pick out 
the fastest trains. 

The train we boarded at Dusseldorf was a slow one, yet 
we only had two hours' travel to reach Cologne. In the 
morning, before entering the exposition at Dusseldorf, we 
visited the market. This is a novel scene to an American. 
In the German cities the women go to the market in the 
morning, and, if not rainy, most of them go bare-headed. They 
carry either a basket or an open woven pouch or sling. In 
the smaller cities the country teams come in. There are 
flowers and all sorts of fruits and vegetables, and such throngs 
of women ! The life and bustle over a whole square of pave- 
ment is a wonderful scene. Of course, all the well-to-do 
people send their servants. As we left Dusseldorf we saw 
a fine farming country and much manufacturing, improve- 
ments in new houses, and new factories. Surely, Germany 
is very progressive. We were surprised to find Dusseldorf a 
well-built city. We passed some forest and long stretches of 
farming country, where men were preparing to sow winter 
wheat. As our train drew into the station at Cologne, we 
saw the cathedral for which this city is noted. Our tickets 
read, and the name on the station is "Koln." We secured 
rooms in a hotel about one block away from the cathedral. 
We went into the cathedral, the most imposing and sym- 
metrical one we have seen. To the roof in the central part 
is 140 feet. You can never realize how one of these great 
cathedrals looks until you see them. The stained windows 
are very fine, the pillars to support the immense weight very 
large, and altogether a remarkable work, one that cost mil- 



58 A CAL1F0RNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

lions and years to build. Some of the streets in Cologne are 
very narrow and people have to walk in the street, as there 
is hardly room to pass on the sidewalk. In all these conti- 
nental European cities one hears more bells ringing than in 
London. There are very few bells ringing in London, even 
on Sunday. Here there are many bells, some ringing as 
chimes, other singly. As we are coming back to Cologne, 
after traveling thousands of miles in Europe, we leave most 
of our luggage at the hotel. It was the finest train we had 
yet seen in Europe. The ticket collector took a key and in- 
serted in a metallic plate just above our heads, and as he 
turned it, the word Berlin popped out — our destination. The 
roads are smooth and we noticed the rails halved together 
at each end for a foot. The iron used for rails is heavy. The 
farmhouses are large in this part of Germany, and many 
new ones are being erected. Brick is used, and tile for the 
roofs of the houses. Towns and cities are close together, 
with, a magnificent farming country between them. The won- 
derful German chemists have analyzed these soils and ran- 
sacked the whole earth to find fertilizing material ; there- 
fore they are more fertile than they probably were many 
centuries ago. We passed forest, field, farm and factory in 
quick succession. At Essen we saw at one side acres of 
shops and scores of tall chimneys all belching forth smoke, 
until our vision was so clouded we could see no termination 
of them — it was Krupp's great works, probably the larg- 
est cannon and ordnance manufacturer in the world. Just 
before noon a gentleman in uniform came along and left in 
our seat a circular with the time table of that train printed 
in German on one side, and a notice that a dining car was in 
the train, and its service and price printed in three lan- 
guages on the other side, one of them English. The lan- 
guage was so remarkable that I copy a little. After describ- 
ing that a fine course dinner would be served, it went on to 
say: "Price is three marks, and if no wine is taken three 
and one-half marks." We passed many freight trains. There 
are more box cars than in England, and they are a lit- 



LONDON, PARIS AND GERMANY. 59 

tie longer, yet not as long as in America. There is no way 
of walking along on the train, and every few cars on one 
end of the car there is a little sentry-looking box, one-half 
in end of car, the other half projecting above. A ladder 
leading to it, and the brakeman rides in that little box, 
standing up endways. 

All day we rode through a fine country, crossing a small 
river. There was one range of hills running north and south, 
and some fine forests. At one place the forests were old 
enough, so a saw mill was working up the pine. Elmer was 
walking about and came back and said, "There is a man 
locked up in the first-class compartment." I said, "Does he 
look like nobility?" He replied, "He is all alone and read- 
ing newspapers." There is a saying common in London that 
only "fools and Americans ride first class." I do not know- 
how it is in Germany. 

Before reaching Berlin we passed several large Portland 
cement manufactories, and it seemed that on their sidings 
many cars were loading for market. Unlike England, nearly 
all the railroads cross the traveled roads on grade, and there 
appears to be a keeper to let down a gate as the train passes. 
We saw in wet places the farmers putting in considerable tile 
draining. In one place there were many acres of asparagus 
growing. We noticed as we entered Berlin that, unlike Ameri- 
can cities, most of the better hotels were near the central 
station. 

We arrived in Berlin Saturday evening and it rained all 
night and until 2 o'clock of Sunday. We started to find iw 
Protestant church Sunday evening, but failed. We found 
two, but they were shut up, and one Catholic church open. 
We did see crowds of people blocking the streets, waiting 
for the theatres to be opened, and the cafes crowded with 
men and women sipping tea, drinking beer and other dnnto 
Our room was not very far from a large cafe, and we 
heard them until two o'clock in the morning. We walked by 
the Kaiser's palace. There is a large open space on three sides 



60 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

of it, fountains playing and much ornamental statuary on 
the different sides. 

On Monday we went to the United States embassy to as- 
certain what farther to do to get into Russia, as we had 
learned that just a passport from Washington was not suffi- 
cient, though necessary. We were received very cordially and 
directed to the American Consul General's office. We went 
there as directed and asked for a "visa" to our passports. 
The first question we were asked was, "What is your re* 
ligion?" We replied, "Protestant." Then, after the papers 
were made out, we were confronted by the consul general with 
a question, "You declare this to be true?" We paid four 
marks each, for this service, again signing a sort of supple- 
mentary passport. This was not enough. We had to go to 
the Russian consul general's office. His office was up stairs, 
yet a large door opened into a court and stairway from the 
sidewalk. We could not open the door. Elmer pulled what 
we supposed was a door-bell. A passer-by ran up and pulled 
this supposed door-bell, and then, while pulling, the knob 
yielded and we went in and walked up stairs. The door- 
keeper has two tiny glass eyes in the door, which cannot be 
opened from the outside, and as we came up the door flew 
open and he bowed very politely to us, ushering us into an 
anteroom, where we found about a dozen of people of all sorts, 
waiting. We were soon ushered into an inner room. With 
our passports in our hands, we told him that we wanted his 
official sanction. He could talk English. He took them. 
We paid him four marks each, and he told us to come again 
at half past two o'clock. We then went to the Dresdener 
Bank to change four hundred marks into Russian money. We 
got one hundred and eighty-three roubles, and eighty ko- 
pecks, with one mark back. This is the largest and most spa- 
cious banking house I was ever in. Yet it took two clerks 
over half an hour to figure out this money and effect the 
change. We went back to the Russian consul general's office 
at half past two. He had done nothing to our passports, and 
after we had waited a few minutes he wrote his "visa" as it 



LONDON, PARIS AND GERMANY. 61 

is called, on their backs, and we were ready to go into Russia. 
With the politest of bows we were ushered out. Many were 
coming and going as we sat there, mostly Russians that had 
been out of the country and were going back. 

As we walked to our hotel, we saw three real black negroes. 
They were attracting much attention on the street. In these 
northern European cities negroes are scarce. We saw a 
hearse returning from a funeral. The four horses hitched to 
it had their heads and entire bodies draped in black, except 
just little holes for their eyes. Each horse had a black plume 
on his head. 

We left Berlin in the edge of the evening for Moscow. We 
reached the frontier of Russia just after one o'clock in the 
morning. The train was locked and no one could get out. 
A Russian in uniform, with a sword clanging on one side, 
and a pistol and holster on the other, his pants tucked in his 
boots, came along in the train, gathering up everybody"? 
passport. Then all the passengers, at half past one in the 
morning, were gathered into a large room in the station, with 
all their luggage, for inspection. Ours passed, yet many had 
to pay duty, as various things dutiable were brought to light ; 
it took two hours to get out of this station. We all had to 
wait at a window and call out our names in order to have our 
passports returned to us. We then purchased our tickets to 
Moscow (as our circular ticket does not include Russia), 
costing us eighteen roubles each. We boarded our train, pay- 
ing an interpreter a few kopecks as a fee to guide us aright. 
Soon after the train started a porter came along and trans- 
formed our car into a sleeper, yet there were only cushions to 
lie down on, no covers. Then the ticket collector came along 
and asked for our "billets." Next morning I arose early and 
saw the sun rising over a flat, level country in Poland. The 
farm houses were poor. Most of them were thatched, low, 
with only one entrance in sight. They looked a little bettei 
where they were grouped in hamlets, instead of being scattered 
about on the roads. Mostly hay crops, and they looked poor; 
the women were lurcfooted, some men were plowing, with 



62 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

the smallest handles and beam I ever saw on a plow. Not 
many trees, and no hills. I do not think the soil is as good as 
in Germany, yet the difference may be in fertilizing. As we 
neared Warsaw there seemed to be peasants driving and 
walking about, and all looked wretchedly poor. The reason 
our consul general asked our religion was that if we had been 
Jews we would have been shut out of Russia. What a travesty 
that is, when one-half of all the Jews in the world are sup- 
posed to live in Russia. 

Our train came into the station. We found nobody to speak 
English, but were directed to a train for Moscow. It poked 
off and encircled the city and pulled up at another station, 
where we were motioned off with the other passengers. An 
express train stood there for Moscow. The officials motioned 
us back as we went to get on. We could not make them un- 
derstand, and while we were recovering our equilibrium the 
train pulled out. We succeeded in finding a German that could 
talk English. He told us that we could not leave for Moscow 
before evening. We were left to meditate in Warsaw. 



III. 
from Moscow to Milan. 

Our meditation lasted all day and until 9:30 p. m. We 
found that it was unavoidable, as the train that preceded us 
in the morning was made up of sleepers, with all seats re- 
served in advance. We walked about Warsaw. A river run- 
ning north and south divides the city into two parts. On the 
west side is the best of the city, where the principal stores 
and hotels are located. The Jews control the wealth and 
trade, being tolerated here by the Russian government, but 
are practically driven out of St. Petersburg and Moscow. 
There are more poor people here, wretchedly so, than I have 
ever seen before ; dirty, barefooted, ignorant, and, above all, 
with a dejected look, human aspirations apparently stamped 
out, if they ever existed. Looking at the thousands of such 
people one could easily become a believer in Darwinism, 
were it not for one fact. Many of these women have on red, 
or checked with red, dresses, if partially concealed with dirt. 
Scientists tell us that monkeys cannot distinguish color. This 
fact throws out Darwin's theory. 

Inside of two hours, as I walked about, I saw four funeral 
processions passing along the streets, just an old one-horse 
wagon draped in some dingy black to bear the coffin, and the 
mourners walking behind — mostly women and children, only 
a handful, and in one of the instances only three, keeping close 
to the wagon to avoid being run over. The only brightness 
was the coffin, which I have no doubt was hired for the oc- 
casion. 



64 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

Policemen dressed in uniform, wearing swords, were at 
every corner; soldiers of all ranks walking and being driven 
about, rich and poor jostling each other on the best streets; 
caste everywhere. Each soldier tips his hat and touches his 
forehead as he meets one of higher rank; even civilians sa- 
lute one another of higher position, and the peasants saluting 
those in authority over them. 

I passed by a large church, all fenced in, and noticed a 
gate unlocked in the fence on one side. I saw now and then 
a well-dressed lady enter this gate, close it, and then enter 
the church for worship. Hundreds of the poor were passing 
in front of the church, many of them with bundles on their 
backs as large as they could carry. They bent their knees 
and crossed themselves, many of them kneeling down on the 
cold, hard, dirty pavement, reverently crossing themselves, not 
once but several times. It was good enough for them to wor- 
ship outside. Most of the churches, by their style, seemed to 
be Greek churches, the national religion of Russia. I soon 
noticed, as I walked about, that each cab driver, most of the 
uniformed men, most of the people, rich and poor, and many 
of them in the street cars, as they passed a church would 
lift their hats or caps, and cross themselves — not in front of 
any one church in particular, but all of them. 

There are many geese raised in Poland. I saw a flock of 
several hundred being driven along a street by men having 
red rags tied to a stick, dodging street cars and teams. Most 
of the streets are paved with stone, worn so long that they 
are now round, uneven — the worst streets that I ever saw. 

At 9:30 p. m. we boarded our train for Moscow. By pay- 
ing one and one-half roubles each we secured reserved seats, 
which gave the entire side of a compartment in a corridor 
car, which was turned into an upper and lower berth for 
sleeping at night, quite comfortable and nice, only if we wanted 
covers and bedding that would cost one rouble more each. 
The other side of the compartment was occupied by a colonel 
in the Russian army and a gentleman from Paris, who talked 



FROM MOSCOW TO MILAN. 65 

together a good deal in Russian, but we could not under- 
stand a word. 

Unlike other parts of Europe, there are few good roads in 
Russia, except military roads across the country. Outside the 
larger towns, and they are few and far between, the people all 
live in villages — just a group of, usually, log houses, with poles 
for rafters, and roofs thatched with straw, old and gray. 
No paint, no whitewash, roofs covered with patches of moss, 
only one door, one little window, scarcely any chimneys. No 
regular streets, little muddy lanes or paths crooking around 
the houses, scarcely any trees, not any flowers in sight. No 
schools, only one room to live in, an adjoining room, without 
much partition sometimes, for the horses, cows and a pfg or 
two, with now and then some sheep. The peasants do not 
undress at night. All they cook is stewed up in one dish, 
and the whole family sit around with spoons, no plates, dip- 
ping out of this dish as they eat. 

In the larger villages some sort of a Greek church and a 
priest ; in the smaller ones, a place called a church but no 
priest. At stated times he comes on Sunday, a bell being 
rung Saturday night to tell the people of his coming. Then 
they go, a part at a time, crowding into the little room called 
a church, until all the people get in. 

They work Sundays and every other day except the great 
holidays of the year, paying no attention to the holidays of 
the cities, and can tell the time only by the sun. They go to 
work at daylight and work until dark. They herd their cat- 
tle and sheep — no fences — and usually the boys or girls do 
the herding, their only education. 

They raise flax. We saw the women washing it and then 
drying it on the grass, and in the villages was a high frame- 
work of poles, to finally cure the flax on. The women weave 
cloth from the flax in the winter time, their only clothing. 
The men have sheep skins sewed together for overcoats. 

The corn (oats) and buckwheat was the only growing 
crop in sight ; they were harvesting, in the crudest way, mostly 
being done by the women. The men were plowing for winter 



66 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

wheat and rye. Some manure was being hauled on to the 
fields and it was quite common to see the women spreading 
it with their hands. 

Each peasant has a patch of potatoes, small and poor, and 
a stack or two of hay, on some interval where much haying 
is done; no clover to enrich the land, naturally fertile, but 
looking worn out by continued cropping. 

After leaving Poland and in Russia proper, a little over 
one-half of the country, as we could see, is growing forests, 
mostly white birch and pine of the Norway variety. Of course, 
there are no primitive forests left, like I have seen in British 
Columbia and Alaska, yet for growing natural forests there 
are ho finer in any country — trees straight as an arrow, and 
as thick as they can grow. Thousands of cords of birch wood 
were cut and hauled by the track, mostly about eighteen inches 
long, looking, as we passed acres of this wood at times, as 
though their tops and sides were tipped with snow, the white 
birch bark presenting that appearance. There were logs of 
pine, railway ties, telegraph poles and piles of sawed lumber. 
Truly, this is a country of wonderful natural resources. 

In Moscow I found a Russian who could talk English who 
had traveled in America, and I asked him, "Why is it that 
the people in these country villages are so poor?" His reply 
came: "There are many things unexplainable in Russia," 
and at the same time intimated that they were not allowed 
to explain them. I understood fully and forebore questioning 
him further on that line. He, however, told me that the peas- 
ants could not cultivate much acreage in grain, as they had 
no labor-saving machinery nor money to buy with, and that 
the Moscow merchants sold everything at about one hundred 
per cent profit, with no competition among them, making it 
still harder for the peasant to buy. I only saw one American 
reaper in Poland and two in Russia, yet there were thousands 
of acres of corn (oats) ready to cut, and women and men 
working at the crop with sickle or scythe hooked on a 
straight stick for a handle. 

As often as every verst (a Russian mile) or less the country 



FROM MOSCOW TO MILAN. 67 

roads cross the railway on the grade, either through forest 
or field. Between Warsaw and Moscow, except close to the 
cities, the railroad people have built small log houses for a 
peasant to live in at each of these crossings. An iron rail 
painted red and green crosses the country road, hung with 
a weight, and always in place as the train passes on each side 
of the track. The remarkable feature is that. eai'y or late, 
rain or shine, a peasant, usually a woman, as the train passes, 
stands between the rail and the track, either one side or the 
other, as motionless as a statue and as solemn as an owl, with 
a stick, covered with a green flag wound on it, pointing directly 
at the train. Between Warsaw and the frontier this does not 
occur, yet the little houses are there, built of brick. 

We passed through about the center of Poland. The country 

is flat, even more so than a Kansas prairie. From Poland to 

Moscow it is a little more rolling, yet no hill anywhere. 

There are fences made mostly of old railroad ties, set endwise 

in the ground, most of the way, as protection from snow drifts 

in the winter, with a hedge of spruce or pine growing. The 

freight cars are nearly all box cars ; on each corner near the 

top and inside is a little iron window or shutter to let do> vn 

The reason, as far as I could see, is that all the troops are 

transported in these cars. We saw train loads of soldiers, 

packed as close as they could stand in these box cars with 

only these iron shutters and a little crack of the side doors 

open. I also saw a train load of peasants riding the same way. 

men and women. 

There are soldiers at every station and walking about in 
the cities, besides the regiments to be seen. We saw at least 
3000 troops pass on a street in Warsaw with their bands of 
music and guns in full marching outfit. The privates looked 
dirty and ignorant and seemed to be but little more than a 
mob. All official positions in trade or government in Russia 
carry with them a uniform ; therefore, outside of peasants, it 
seems almost every other man has a uniform on. Everything 
is formal. When your train leaves a station the station-keep- r 
rings a bell twice. Then, after a few moments, he rings the 



68 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

bell three times, then a train man blows a pocket whistle. 
The engineer on the locomotive responds with a short steam 
whistle. Then the train man whistles again and the engineer 
responds, and at that moment the train starts off. There are 
double tracks on all the roads we have traveled over in Eu- 
rope, and sometimes more. 

We found Moscow, the second city in Russia, quite inter- 
esting. There are many Greek churches, and what seems to 
be in many places a small place of worship at some turn of 
the street, with open doors and candles burning inside, with 
people passing in and out. The cabs here have the smallest 
wheels I ever saw, the front ones about two feet in diameter 
and the hind ones but little larger. The horses have a yoke 
sticking high above the collar, in the form of a half circle, 
to which the fills are fastened, the yoke in turn fastened to 
the horse's collar about half way to the top. Most of the 
streets are paved with the roughest of cobble stones. We 
hired one of these curious-looking cabs, yoke and all, paying 
one and one-half roubles for a lengthy drive about this old 
city, once the capital of Russia, and where all the Czars are 
crowned. There are some blocks of buildings of imposing ap- 
pearance. One noticeable feature in a European city is what 
they call an arcade, a long, handsome passageway a few feet 
in width, running at an angle all the way through some 
block of buildings, lined with small, handsome stores each' 
side, and usually crowded with people. We saw three of 
these long arcades, in a block approaching completion, in 
Moscow. There is more crossing and lifting of hats by the 
people here than in Warsaw, as they went by the places of 
worship. A Greek priest in a two-seated closed carriage, sit- 
ting with a lighted candle in his hand, passed us. Most of 
the people in the street caught sight of him and such crossing, 
bowing of knees, and touching of foreheads I never saw be- 
fore. All I could see in the carriage was the priest and his 
candle and two ladies sitting on the back seat. All very ma- 
terial. What were they worshipping? We went into a very 
large Greek church. Except in architecture, with its lighted 




CARRIAGE IN MOSCOW 



FROM MOSCOW TO MILAN. 69 

candles, we could see but little difference between tin's church 
and a Catholic one. There were no pews nor seats, and the 
confessionals were not as prominent in the places we saw used 
that way as in Catholic churches. Men were wearing over- 
coats, reminding us that we were in a cold country, and it 
was cold. There are other places of interest, but this was 
one of their numerous holidays and they were closed. I pur- 
chased some grapes of a man on the street, paying 45 kopecks 
for a pound, and what a curious-looking old balancing scales 
he had, just like those you have seen in old pictures. The 
poor of Moscow, while we saw whole streets of them, did 
not look as poor as the peasants in the country or the wretch- 
edly poor people of Warsaw. 

As we left Moscow the sun was shining brightly, about two 
hours before sunset. All Russian cities have many roofs 
painted a bright green, while all the balls and small spires 
of the Greek churches are gilded with a color as bright as 
polished brass. Many of the large buildings are painted in 
bright colors, unlike other European cities we have seen. 
The rays of this bright sun caught dome, tower, roof and 
spire with such a glow and gleam of sparkling brightness as 
our train rolled away that within my memory's grasp I will 
ever carry this picture, one of the gems of soft, brilliant beauty 
that poets love to dream over. The next morning, as our fast 
express train was covering the long distance to Warsaw, the 
sun rose clear in this Russian sky, and in a few minutes dark, 
gray, cold and pitiless-looking clouds overcast the entire hori- 
zon, sending a wall of gloom over forest and field. I thought 
of Napoleon and his army retreating from Moscow, over prac- 
tically the same route we were traveling, nearly one hundred 
years ago. How easy it was, here on the ground, amid such 
surroundings, to fill in the picture with all its dire settings 
of disaster and death, until, as I mused upon it, in my reverie 
every tree, knoll, or hollow that went flitting by, as the train" 
rolled on, seemed to have a part in the painting of the pic- 
ture. 

Unlike the rest of Europe, all the land in Russia, including 



70 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

Poland, as far as our trip extended, to Moscow, that is culti- 
vated, is ploughed in extremely narrow lands, not over eight 
feet wide. The farmer is trying to run off surplus moisture 
on the surface, while in other parts of Europe the land is un- 
derdrained with tile. I should judge that Russia is the natural 
home of crows, as we saw flock after flock. Some of them 
would count into the thousands. 

While eating in the dining car we incidentally learned that 
the police of some interior city must "visa" our passports be- 
fore we would be allowed to leave Russia. Having no alter- 
native, we abandoned our through train in Warsaw at one 
o'clock at night, went to a hotel, awakened the proprietor, and 
through an interpreter engaged rooms, handed him our pass- 
ports with the request that he would obtain of the police their 
"visa" for leaving the country. Had we gone to the frontier 
from Moscow as we started they would have sent us back at 
our own expense. We are again left to meditate in Warsaw. 
About five o'clock p. m. we obtained our passports of the 
police — with the privilege of paying one and a half roubles 
each for their "visa" — and boarded another through train for 
Germany, arriving in Alexandraw, on the frontier, at 10 p. m. 
. Alighting, we handed our passports to the Russian officers 
and awaited events. Our train rolled away. After a while a 
German train backed into the station and we went on board. 
For a long time we sat there, then a Russian official with the 
passports of all the passengers came along the train and at 
each compartment looked in and requested the names of the 
passengers. As we called out our names he handed us our 
passports that he carried in a large leather book, where each 
passport had a page. Every one having a passport without 
the proper "visa" on it was compelled to leave the train. There 
was much excitement and a great deal of Russian talk. As 
soon as the passengers in each compartment got their pass- 
ports, it was locked up. When all through the train started 
for Thorn, on the German side of the frontier. 

As we arrived in Thorn, a German officer, wearing on his 
head a helmet running to a point on top of the crown, looking 



FROM MOSCOW TO MILAN. 71 

like burnished brass, came and asked for our passports. He 
looked at them, simply noting that they had been stamped by 
the police on the Russian side and handed them back. Then 
we carried our luggage into the station, where we again passed 
the custom house officials. Then taking still another train 
(as the one we were on was going to Berlin), we started for 
Breslau, the third largest city in Germany, Berlin and Ham- 
burg being the first and second. It was Saturday night. We 
lay down on the cushions and curled up, sleeping the best 
we could, only one passenger coming in to disturb our slum- 
bers, arriving in Breslau at sunrise Sunday morning. 

An Englishman in Russia had told us of a hotel where the 
porter could speak English. Armed with the address, and by 
showing it to numerous policemen and street sweepers, we 
managed to find it, and settled down until Monday morning. 
At ten o'clock we went to the largest Protestant church, 
and as a German said who could talk a little English, had "the 
tallest spire in Breslau, no meters high." The church was 
built in the cathedral style, probably before Martin Luther's 
time, and had been fixed over by painting and decoration to 
conform to Protestant ideas. There was a large congregation 
of people not overdressed, as that sort of people do not go 
to church in Europe. The singing was good, although in 
German. Of the sermon I only caught two words, Moses and 
Jerusalem. Of course it was in German. The reverence and 
attention was good. We saw no signs of any Sunday scTlool. 

Breslau is a very old city, the buildings looking old. It has 
a population of about on-half million. In these old cities 
there are many streets barely wide enough for a wagon, and 
never run straight for more than a block or two. There are 
no stores open Sunday, except bakeries, fruit and meat stores. 
Progressive German people! We admire their sturdy charac- 
ter and cannot find any more poverty and want in their cities 
than in America. 

Early Monday morning we walked to the station. It was 
along one of the principal business streets, time not yet 
o'clock. I will never forget what we saw. The street was 



74 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

the hay crop, gamboling about like children, as they spread 
out the hay. Many of the women had red dresses on, adding 
color to the scene. At one station I saw women working on 
some side tracks, digging out the grass and weeds. These 
Germans are very ingenious, as they make and put up in 
the fields the most real-looking scarecrows I ever saw. They 
just seemed ready to talk or walk. 

As we arrived at Oderberg we passed out of Southeastern 
Germany into Hungary. The emporor of Austria is 
king of Hungary. Here we again passed into the custom 
house and our luggage was passed through for Austria. As 
we rode into Hungary the country began to get hilly with 
more forest. The farm work was the same as in Germany, 
only the Hungarians in most places had posts about ten feet 
long setting in the ground not far apart, with crooked sticks 
passing through them, upon which they hung the hay, making 
little ricks of hay, straight and uniform in size. Instead of 
tile, their houses were covered with slate, almost black in 
color. We began an upward grade by a little river. The hills, 
as we looked from the car windows, were soon replaced by 
larger ones, then by real mountains — the first we had seen 
since leaving Scotland. Through a tunnel, then up another 
valley, with the hillsides all terraced into little plots of 
ground. Wild flowers were everywhere, as fresh and bright 
as nature can paint them. The annual leaf or deciduous trees 
were being replaced with evergreen trees, many of them 
spruce, all so delicate in color and fine in foliage that their 
drooping branches were like festoons of silk woven by the 
wonderful handiwork of nature. Up and up the grade we 
climbed, then circling the head of a valley to gain in grade, 
with villages down below us full of surprises to us in their 
features and architecture. Again another tunnel, and we were 
over the divide. On one side these little mountain brooks and 
springs were flowing to the Baltic sea ; on the other side, 
where our train was now rolling along, the waters were flow- 
ing to the Mediterranean. The tunnel we had just passed was 
only through a small hill, and as we sped along over and 



FROM MOSCOW TO MILAN. 75 

around these small mountains, with forests, and where even 
the mountain tops are terraced into little, tiny plots of grain 
and grass, and as far as our eye could look over the country 
and up the little villages for many miles, we felt that we were 
not needing any airships to sail away in, but were really rid- 
ing over the tops of the mountains down into Southeastern 
Europe. 

I wish I had the time to picture to you and trace out the 
many rare bits of scenery, to portray the ever-changing 
views. More beautiful than diamonds, more lasting to us 
than mere apples of gold or silver, will be the ever-recurring 
memory of this midday ride over this continental divide in 
Europe. I want to tell you of one little incident. On the 
frontier of Hungary, at Odenburg, a gentleman and a lady 
came into our compartment. He was about fifty years old, 
dark in feature, a type of southern races of Europe. Soon 
after the train left Odenburg I glanced at the gentleman sit- 
ting just opposite of me. I saw tears in his eyes and trickling 
down on his cheeks. He saw I noticed them, and arose, go- 
ing into the ante room of the lavatory, where I heard great 
sobs of anguish. Soon he came back; the lady got their va- 
lise and spread out a lunch that would tempt an invalid, and, 
as she was eating, asked him to eat, in language unknown 
to us. He shook his head in refusal, and after a while stood 
in the corridor, where I could see his frame tremble, and hear 
the subdued sobs. His deep anguish touched my heart, and 
in sympathy I wiped away some tears. After crossing the 
divide his face changed; he called for the lunch, and with 
great avidity ate of the chicken and other food; then after- 
wards laid his head back on the cushioned rest and slept 
like an infant. At some time in our lives you and I have had 
these times of deep anguish, leaves of personal history, per- 
haps unwritten and unknown to others, yet so real to our- 
selves. 

In this memorable ride to Budapest, we rode through vil- 
lages in Hungary as pretty in outline, if the mountains were 
not as high, as those about Redlands, and to this picture there 



76 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

was the ever-present charm of novelty and trees and green 
grass. We saw men working in the fields with shirts on as 
you have seen them in pictures, while the women wore very 
picturesque costumes. We rode through another tunnel, leav- 
ing forests of evergreen. As we emerged from the tunnel we 
saw only forests of deciduous trees, and over on a steep hill 
was the ruins of an old castle, a relic of the feudal ages. We 
passed several of these relics. 

It was near evening. The cumuli in the skies had become 
mere gossamer-looking threads, and the sun shining through 
them cast its soft, mellow light over hill, mountain, farm, field 
and forest, and I caught something of its gleam and sang a 
melody in my heart full of happiness and joy. Just at dusk 
we rode into a narrow valley. The forests were gone, the 
hills were terraced to their tops, and the peasants were going 
home on the country roads from their work. At 10 p. m. we 
arrived at Budapest. 

In the morning I arose early and walked. I soon came to 
the Danube river, much wider than the Seine at Paris. The 
current is strong and the volume of water flowing along is 
large. Pleasure boats and boats of commerce were plying up 
and down its broad waters. An esplanade, consisting of a 
walk and trees, with a row of chairs and seats facing the 
river, looked so inviting that I entered and paced along. I 
came to a large bridge. Paid in toll four fillers to cross. 
There are at each end of the bridge two large lions, with 
their shaggy manes, tails and heads, all carved out of rock, 
looking almost as real as life. 

I walked up an eminence at the side of the river, where 
there were seats, trees and flowers, saw a well-built city of 
700,000 lying on both banks of the river, with many imposing 
blocks of buildings. There are no sky scrapers in these 
European cities, yet they are uniform, because whole streets 
are lined with buildings five or six stories high — mostly five. 

Busy, bustling city — life was already throbbing in its streets. 
I saw some men and women stalking around barefooted, 
groups of women carrying packs on their backs, as large al- 



FROM MOSCOW TO MILAN. 77 

most as they were, yet many well dressed people everywhere. 
--\s I looked at the people, I missed the blue eyes and light 
features seen among the Germans. Here were darker 
eyes, and more swarthy features. I was coming in contact 
with the Southern races of Europe. I felt a warmth in the air, 
and noted that even the clouds had sharper edges to them, 
features that are peculiar to and a part of more Southern 
climes. 

I paid two fillers to walk through a tunnel out into a quieter 
part of the city, passed a little market in the open air with 
only a canopy for a covering, where the chattering and trading 
of meat, fruit and vegetable venders was a wonderfully inter- 
esting scene. I saw women sitting down, holding live chickens 
in their laps, with their heads all one way, waiting for a pur- 
chaser. I purchased one kilogram of grapes for forty fillers, 
and as I motioned to the woman selling them for a larger 
sack, how they laughed, with their sparkling dark eyes and 
vivacious ways. 

I walked along and saw several small boys and girls, with 
their books in leather satchels, going to school, nicely dressed, 
with bits of ribbon, pink, blue and red in contrast with gray, 
on dress and hat ; and the boys with as wide turndown white 
collars as any American boy. They trooped merrily along; so 
did I. They jumped and played hide and seek. I wanted to. 
They stopped abruptly, as children do when a thought or 
whim catches them. I did. Was I not a child? Are we not 
all, only children, even though grown up or wrinkled and 
gray with (so-called) age? Among men on earth there is a 
measurement called Time. It does not exist in Heaven, there- 
fore there are no old people in Heaven and never will be. 
My morning frolic ended, I walked back to my hotel. 

We paid one and one-half krones extra to the cab driver 
to drive us about the city on our way to the station. Streets full 
of people, women along the edge of the walks and in the street 
with baskets of fruit to sell, horses hauling wagons and hitched 
to one side of the tongue instead of fills, peasant women, some 
barefooted, some with red dresses on, many of them bare- 



78 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

headed, some balancing loads on their heads, many of them 
wearing skirts so large and round at the bottom that it re- 
minded me of the hoopskirts our mothers used to wear many 
years ago. 

Men were sprinkling the streets, or rather washing them 
with large hose hitched to hydrants, and men and women 
dodging to get out of the way. Companies of soldiers march- 
ing along dressed in navy blue colored clothes with many 
trimmings of reddish colored braid on coat and hat. Nov- 
elty, charm, color and perhaps romance at every turn and 
step. 

We boarded our train for Vienna and as the train ambled 
away we cast a long, lingering look over a low range of moun- 
tains towards Constantinople, wanting to enter the Orient that 
way, where each hour, as the cars rolled along, we could 
have noted a change in the people. 

We now saw fields of Indian corn, quite numerous all the 
way to Vienna, and vineyards, the first of each we had seen 
in Europe. The vineyards are all trained up on sticks about 
four or five feet high, and the rows are not over two feet 
apart. At a distance the uniform height and appearance, 
still in full leaf, resembled a nursery of budded orange trees 
in Redlands, ready to transplant, with the stakes they are 
tied to just visible above the top of the green. We also saw 
the first peach trees, not in orchards, but about the gardens 
and towns. There were many locust trees planted by the 
sides of the country roads. 

We were practically following up the Danube river valley all 
day. It soon began to widen out and there were great vistas 
of as fine farming land as any in the world, level and naturally 
fertile. The farmers were plowing with the same style of plow 
used all over Europe, with two wheels in front, and are 
grain raisers — the first section of Europe we have seen so 
largely devoted to grain raising. At their villages there were 
scores of large stacks, not little pointed ones, but long and 
high, their harvest of the summer gathered and not yet 
threshed. In three places I saw steam engines pulling plows 




ONE SOURCE OF THE RIVER JORDAN. 

AT C.KSAKKA PHILIPPI 



FROM MOSCOW TO MILAN. 79 

across the field. In many places the little plots of farming 
had given away to large, broad fields in their place. We 
passed many fields of sugar beets and men and women 
gathering them ; cars loaded with them at the stations. I never 
saw a finer growth of sugar beets, just covering the ground 
with their tops, with no rows visible either way. I do not 
think the farms looked quite as prosperous as in Germany, yet 
in many places a richer soil naturally. 

Austria is not, from what we could see, building up manu- 
facturing plants like Germany. The German farmer, because 
of shops and labor required to run them, finds it more profit- 
able to raise not grain, but other food. There are many 
oxen used in the fields. The valley narrows as we passed 
Pressburg, quite a city, and the train pushes through a tun- 
nel. We passed some steep hillsides, all terraced into vine- 
yards, with just what we call in California the smallest of 
cabins, many scores of them, for a watcher to sleep in at 
night, to keep thieves away. Before reaching Vienna (called 
and spelled Wien all over this country) we crossed a broad, 
level plain, rich, fertile and magnificent to look at. I remem- 
bered a bit of history. Vienna at one time was the capital 
city of Europe, rich and powerful. It led all other cities 
at that time, outnumbering any one of them in population. 
I refer to the close of the Seventeenth century. The Mo- 
hammedans were sweeping over Europe with irresistible 
hordes of victorious armies. They were encamped before 
Vienna, more than likely upon this very plain we were looking 
at. History tells us that John Sobieski, a noble Polish chief- 
tain, raised an army of seventy thousand men, and marched 
to the city's relief. He came upon the Mohammedan army, 
300,000 strong, and at five o'clock on Sunday, October 12, 1683, 
this brave and gallant Polish army, shouting an ever-memor- 
able battle cry, "Not unto us, O Lord, but unto thee be the 
glory," gave battle to the enemy. It is a matter of history 
that after dark the moon was totally eclipsed, and these Mo- 
hammedans whose banner is the crescent, as they saw their 
emblem fading from the sky, fled away and all Europe was 



80 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING "THE GLOBE. 

saved from ruin and plunder. As the gloom of evening set- 
tled down upon this broad plain, we mused upon this history 
and could almost see in our vision its history repeated. We 
arrived in Vienna just after dark. 

We saw a better looking city than Berlin, with wider streets 
and trees. While Berlin has its great street, Under Van 
Linden, a magnificent feature of that city, Vienna has sev- 
eral streets of that character, open squares and all shapes of 
triangular spaces. We rode through the square where the 
Emperor lives and noted the large palace with much statuary 
around and about it. The parliament buildings were grand, 
and the courthouse is equally as imposing and beautiful. The 
museum and other public buildings are of that character which 
architects love to look at as they study design and effect. 
The monuments, statuary on all sorts of buildings, much of 
it of rare beauty, is not equalled by any other city we have 
seen. Stone copings, caps to the windows, pillars, and al- 
most everything about the central and newest part of the 
city seem to be carved with such a disregard for labor, cost 
and time, that the wonder is when did this people accomplish 
all this work? London in its general appearance has nothing, 
except size, to compare with these great continental cities of 
Central Europe. We saw a novel way of sprinkling the 
streets. A cart, with tank in the usual way, discharging 
water out of one sprinkler in the rear and a man walking 
behind, with a rope hitched to the end of the sprinkler and 
with a stately tread, would pull the sprinkler first one way 
and then the other, as the wagon moved along. 

The Viennese are a light-hearted, merry people, sipping their 
tea and reading papers in open air cafes, where they love to 
sit and talk and look at the people passing by. 

We boarded our train and rode away to the northwest, 
passing into and up a valley of wonderful beauty, with beau- 
tiful hillsides, beautiful homes, bits of green meadow and 
scattering trees. Then through a tunnel, and off we were 
dashing through the country, over and around hills, with 
their sloping sides covered with grass or forest, looking up 



FROM MOSCOW TO MILAN. 81 

little side valleys, as pretty as nature and man can make them. 
Ponds of water, palatial homes of stone, trimmed with soft 
brilliant colors of green and brown, ever passing forest, field, 
hill and dale. Over this wondrous and captivating rural 
scene ihere came little rifts of sunshine from between the 
moving clouds, bathing the entire landscape with recurring 
waves of light and shadow. I gazed ; my eyes could not 
catch all. The surfeit of beauty was too great, and through 
all the other senses I quaffed great draughts of uplifting, 
spirit reaching and soul-inspiring food, sweeter, I fancy, 
than the heavenly food of the angels. We reached an open 
country, speeding by hamlet, village and farm life again. 
Over to the left, about forty miles away, I began to notice a 
range of mountains. They grew in size as the hours passed 
by. I watched their contour as they assumed height, dis- 
tinctness and character. I began to suspect that we were 
approaching the Alps on their northeast corner. They were 
the largest mountains yet seen in Europe. 

We passed one of the porcelain factories that Austria takes 
such a prominence in. There was a village about it, one 
of the most ornamental ones I ever saw. The houses were 
trimmed in beautiful colors of green and blue, being all of 
one size. After this we passed a village located on a hill, 
then came to and passed up a large river. There were no 
poor houses in sight. All are wonderfully ornamented. 
Under the eaves some of them were light green, and the 
chimneys were tipped in white. Pieces of forest, no finer 
in any country, not large trees but thrifty growing ones. The 
peasants must change work, as in one field cutting their after- 
growth of hay I saw thirty men mowing hay by hand, one 
after the other across the field, I counted them. The range 
of mountains at the left came nearer. Patches of forest, 
farm and meadow or pasture dotted their sides where they 
were not too precipitous. Villages only two or three miles 
apart. The most charming combination of rural life yet 
seen, and as I write this the memory of the picture is so 
^•iking -:nd real thai I have to hold on to the chair I am 



82 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

sitting in to keep fr >m soaring aloft in some aerial flight of 
thought, for fear you might think I was drawing on mere 
fancy and imagination instead of fact. How true it is as 
the ?dage reads, "Truth is stranger than fiction." We left 
the river and curved toward the mountains, with 
meadows about us as green as the fields of Eden ever were, 
with wild flowers cropping out, and among them patches of 
purple flowers so delicate in petal and color that even a 
king might covet them to wear on his crown. We came 
close to the mountains. Their contour had been rapidly 
changing. We now saw towering peaks standing in a bold 
outline against the sky, and other mountains with great jag- 
ged rocks clinging to their sides, and range behind range, 
until some peaks were wrapped in snow. 

The train stopped at Salzburgh, just in the edge of these 
Alpine mountains. It was 5 o'clock in the afternoon. The 
air was cool and bracing, and the mountains looked so in- 
viting that we broke our journey, as our tickets gave us the 
right to do, abandoned the train and walked away. Many 
of the passengers left the train at the same time. There 
were about twenty hotel carriages or coaches at the station 
and many cabs. Along streets lined with trees, looking like 
maple, all in full leaf, and turning little corners of parks of 
flowers we saw a fine looking hotel, as they all are, and 
hired a front room on the first floor from the roof, to give 
us elevation in order to see the mountains, being ever careful 
to maintain our dignity as Californians should. I opened 
the front windows and looked out. At the left, in a private 
park belonging to the hotel. I saw a row of rose bushes 
loaded with flowers circling along a walk, looking more 
like a row of flowers in California than any that I had pre- 
viously noticed. Over the mountains clouds were beginning 
to gather. On the street oxen were walking along, har- 
nessed like horses, pulling great loads. Cabs were flying 
about. Well dressed men and women were perambulating 



FROM MOSCOW TO MILAN. 83 

along the streets. We were in one of the famous summer 
resorts of Austria. 

After adjusting our collars and cravats and brushing our 
hats, we started to take a walk. We found curio stores 
and most all other kinds located on the most curious, quaint, 
crooked and narrow streets I ever saw, connected with lit- 
tle alley ways, only large enough for carts drawn by dogs 
or men and people to pass through. There are other streets, 
wide and nice, but the business and trading seemed to be 
done mostly on the little streets. We crossed the river, a 
tributary of the Danube. We came to a sheer wall or preci- 
pice of rock with a tunnel through it. Over the entrance 
there is much carving and sculpture, also on the other side, 
as we passed through. Beyond this ledge of rock, many 
hundreds of feet high, and as long as we could see either 
way, and too steep to climb, with a width of several hun- 
dred feet, we found a beautiful quiet valley full of fine 
homes and streets lined with large trees. All ovet the city, 
on both sides of the river, are small and large parks, flow- 
ers, many shade trees of maple, silver leaf birch, the poplar, 
with its ever-restless leaves, elm and locusts, with others I 
could not name. 

There are many churches and large, handsome hotels by 
the score, some surrounded by parks, others built up on some 
hill or crag, and still others perched upon a mountain top 
or side, to catch the glow of sunset, as fashionable peopTe 
scarcely ever see the sun rise, except by accident. 

The next morning I arose early to get an hour or two of 
quiet. It was before sunrise. The birds were singing as I 
opened wide the front windows, and all nature, after its 
refreshing shower bath, seemed to be singing a song of 
thanksgiving and joy. The approaching light of day in 
the east revealed an outline of sharp, rugged Alpine moun- 
tains, with little clouds hovering over their tops. I watched 
the unfolding of day. Just over the top of a jagged peak 
the sun rose, peering through a cloud with just enough of 
color and sunshine that it seemed to say, "Good morning." 



84 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

Joyfully I returned the salutation and watched for it to 
emerge from the cloud, which it did in a few minutes, light- 
ing up, as only the king of day can, hill, mountain and val- 
ley, while on bush, tree and flower and adjacent house tops 
the lingering raindrops caught its light and sparkled like 
real diamonds. The fresh crisp mountain breeze came 
from these Alpine mountains, some of them wrapped in beau- 
tiful snow. As we walked to the station some three hours 
later, the unexpected streets running in all directions, the 
arcades, unheard-of places for stores, monuments, statues, 
and little parks in triangles and squares ; with people in all 
sorts of dress walking about or riding in carriages, and over 
it all the charm of fine mountain scenery, made us exclaim, 
"Beautiful Salzburgh, we only wish that we could linger 
long within the portals of your inviting doors." 

As our train rolled away there was woven over some of 
these sharpest Alpine peaks a wreath of encircling clouds 
so fine in texture that in this sparkling bright sunshine they 
looked like crowns of real lace, finer than any Brussels 
could make, and were fitting for these monarchs of moun- 
tains to wear. We soon came to a lake on the left and 
meadows on the right, with cultivated farms on the 
foothills and beyond the ever-varying outline of these bold 
appearing mountains. 

In this European trip I have been much interested in watch- 
ing the country roads as they would swing into view, some- 
times running parallel, and as there is much travel on them, 
enabling me to catch many views of country life. I saw 
single cows hitched to wagons with poles instead of fills ; 
cows yoked together, oxen traveling along as brisk as a 
horse, with collars and tugs to pull by, with their mouths 
muzzled. Men and women in variety of costumes — mostly 
women carrying bulky loads on top of their heads, some- 
times balancing them without touching them with their hands ; 
not riding, but walking with an active step. Morning and 
evening these roads are traveled much by the peasants in 
coming and returning from field and village. 



FROM MOSCOW TO MILAN. 85 

Before and after reaching Prien, the pretty lake continued 
on the left and the mountains in their change of contour, 
being large and rugged, were wonderfully interesting. Then 
we came to the largest lot of lumber yet seen at one place 
in Europe and a saw mill. Many cars were loading with 
lumber for market; also in other towns the same features 
exist. Now the road turned more to the north, leaving the 
mountains running across an open country very fertile with 
farms and bits of forest, with their usual bright look, and it 
is simply surprising to an American to see every farm so 
neat and their houses in the villages. There is nothing ly- 
ing around the houses or fields, no fences, and as a rule 
no hedges in this part of Europe. We passed through, or 
rather into, Munich. Many of these cities have a large 
station and the track ends there, then an engine hitches 
on the rear of the train and away the train goes, circling the 
city to resume its course again. If the compartment you are 
in is full, you will be riding with your face the other way 
after leaving one of these cities. This peculiarity exists 
mainly in Germany. 

Munich is a large, well-built city and full of manufactur- 
ing. These German cities, with their bustle and life and 
crowds of people taking the trains, resemble American cities 
more than any other in continental Europe. All these cities 
are built compact, witli scarcely any straggling houses. Com- 
ing right into farm and field as you leave solid blocks of 
city houses, it is the same way with the country villages, the 
houses being close together and cultivated land coming next 
to the village on all sides. The villages are real close to- 
gether, there being almost always more than one in sight at 
once. Not all have stations, as sometimes they will be a mile 
or two u\vay from the road, and the through express trains 
(which we always selected) only stopped at the large cities. 
We passed several peat fields where the farmers have little 
old wooden houses to store the peat in for their year's use, 
and some had peat beds on their own farms. We passed 
Augsburgh, which is quite a large place, and soon reached 



86 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

Ulm, a city with fortifications all around it. We here left 
the river Danube, which we had seen at different times, and 
passed down a small valley with miles and miles of apple 
orchards on the hillsides, not set in regular form, but scat- 
tered around in a haphazzard way. Some of the land is cul- 
tivated, but most of it is in meadow or pasture, some trees 
full of apples, others none, and they are all large in size, 
except some younger trees not in bearing. On the steepest 
hillsides there were grape vines on little terraces, looking 
with their stakes at a distance like little patches of real corn 
just tasseling out. We also saw after passing Stuttgart many 
vegetable gardens. 

Here the gloom of evening settled down upon us and we 
did not reach Mayence until midnight, and the next day 
sailed down the Rhine to Cologne. 

Next morning we walked on board the Kaiserin Auguste 
Victoria at Mayence; rather a fine-looking steamer, yet not 
as large or handsome as our Hudson river steamers. All 
sorts of well-dressed people came on board, and from all 
nations except Oriental. Only now and then did we hear one 
speaking our language. 

An officer of the boat rang a bell by striking it with a 
stick, making a noise like a dinner gong, which was a sig- 
nal for starting, and away we sailed. A succession of towns 
along the river's bank, with an open country, for the first 
half hour's sail; then stopping at Bingen, a large town where 
a good many passengers boarded the steamer. The towns 
along the banks of the river have beautiful walks and drives, 
ornamented walls and rows of trees. Between the towns 
the river banks are paved with stone. There are also many 
jetties of rock to confine the channel, some running parallel 
with the river, others running out from one shore. 

The open country was soon replaced by steep hillsides, 
not as abrupt but as high as the Palisades on the Hudson. 
In places they are very steep, yet for miles the entire sweep 
or slope of these hills are terraced into little plots and 
planted to grapes. In many places a high stone wall is 



FROM MOSCOW TO MILAN. 87 

built on the lower edge of these little plots only a few feet 
in width, to hold them. Little stone drains ran from top to 
bottom of the hill to carry off extra water, should there 
be a hard rain. Every little nook of land along the river 
front has a village, and on each side of the river a railway 
track is built, with trains running frequently and passengers 
waving their handkerchiefs from the car windows as they 
passed our steamer. Where a hill is too steep to terrace, it 
is covered with bushes. We met and passed many little 
steamers towing canal boats. They were all painted with 
bands of white, yellow or a terra-cotta color; even the 
smokestacks of the steamers were painted with some bright 
band of color around it in the center. Each steamer only 
tried to tow three or four boats, one behind the other. We 
passed three rafts of logs during the day, one of them of 
considerable size. The most interesting of all are the old 
castles ; we probably passed a score of them. On every 
steep rock or pointed hill, there they were, most of them in 
ruins. How picturesque they looked, and I could almost 
fancy that some plumed knight, covered with helmet, would 
challenge us and combat our passage. The larger the rock 
or steep hilltop, the larger the castle, as no castles were 
built in the mediaeval ages except where an abrupt precipice 
of rock crowned the top of a steep place or small moun- 
tain, and then the castle builders could construct a moat, 
covered with a drawbridge on the most exposed side. All 
they wanted was three abrupt sides in the foundation as a 
requisite need in starting the castle. All have towers with 
loopholes, and some of the larger ones had more than one 
tower. The work required to build one, as they are placed 
in such inaccessible places, is simply beyond calculation. 

Some one had repaired one and was living in it, having 
painted the old walls yellow and put in windows, the most 
inharmonious thing I ever saw. Their natural color is gray, 
in keeping with their age and surroundings. Even the Ger- 
mans on board our steamer were as much interested in look- 
ing at these castles as people of other nations. 



88 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

Some of the little towns that had just room to build be- 
tween the hills and the river, are gray with age, and must 
be very old. In many places the river was narrow enough to 
throw a rock from the steamer to each bank. As we jour- 
neyed, the hills became smaller and more sloping, with a 
stretch of land quite level between them and the river. 

The scene changed. The whole valley then, with the slop- 
ing hillsides, were covered with green grass and apple trees, 
one of the prettiest rural scenes in the world. Let me draw 
another picture. I will not need to tell you how the tables 
on the upper decks were used during the day — only note 
that waiters stood around with trays in their hands. You 
can guess the rest. About 2 o'clock in the afternoon dinner 
was served in the lower saloons, both fore and aft. We had 
a fine lunch that we purchased in Mayence, therefore did not 
take dinner. Just near its close I walked by the dining 
room, the largest one in the aft of the steamer, and as I 
stood by the tiller I glanced down the whole length of 
the two dining tables, and in the center was a row of cham- 
pagne and beer bottles, with their bright showy labels glis- 
tening in the light, too numerous to be counted without ef- 
fort and time. Men and women were sitting there by the 
scores, and I suppose the most enlivening sound to them 
was the clinking of their glasses and the popping of the 
corks as the row of bottles increased. No music on these 
steamers. No room in the saloons except that occupied by 
the dining tables. The wind was so cold that the passengers 
crept behind the smoke stack, pilot house and a place where 
heat came from the boilers. Towards evening the country 
we passed on either side of the river was level. Far ahead 
in the distance we saw the towers of the Cologne cathedral. 
We reached the landing place a little after 5 o'clock and 
landed in a city that was founded 38 years B. C by the Ro- 
mans. 

How does the Rhine compare with the Hudson? The 
Hudson is wider, has larger mountains and more forests on 
its banks. Nature has done more for the Hudson than 



■ 



ON Till; RHINE 

GERMANY. 



FROM MOSCOW TO MILAN. 89 

for the Rhine. Man has done more to beautify the Rhine 
than the Hudson. Old castles always have associated with 
them romance, which in turn captivates people. The Rhine 
is neat in appearance all along its shores. So is, or was, 
the Hudson, but man has built scores of unsightly, sometimes 
unpainted, buildings along the Hudson, sadly marring its 
beauty, calling them ice houses. The steamers as I have 
noted are not comfortable. Those on the Hudson arc 
floating palaces compared with them. Yet do not miss sail- 
ing on the Rhine when you have the opportunity, as there 
is a charm, a combination of hill and valley, a landscape 
varied and interesting, something different than seen from 
any American river. 

In Cologne we purchased tickets for Rome, nearly eleven 
hundred miles away, costing us one hundred and eleven marks 
and forty pfennigs each. We wanted to rest on our journey 
in Switzerland, over the Sabbath, and finding a good train 
leaving about sunrise, we arranged to take this early train. 

In the early morning light we cast another look at this 
great cathedral, the fifth largest in the world. As we rode 
away, looking eastward between some streets, I saw the sun 
just rising like a large, red, round ball. Our train darted 
through the fortifications and to my surprise the country 
was enveloped in a fog so thick that for two or three hours 
we could not distinguish a single object. Were it not for 
the rattle and bumping of the train, one could almost imag- 
ine we were sailing through some ethereal regions in space. 
As we rode through the fortifications at Coblentz, another 
fortified city many miles from Cologne, the fog began to dis- 
appear. 

We were riding up the Rhine on the right bank. For over 
two thousand years this valley has been settled, and back 
of that a history in the misty past. As this misty veil of fog 
kept gathering and then receding, and, in connection with 
the sun, playing hide and seek over hill, crag, rock, river 
and castle, I kept thinking that history and harmony were 
really united like twin sisters, as I looked upon the Rhine 



90 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

and its valley this equinoctial September day. There was 
no wind ; one of those quiet mornings when all nature seems 
wrapped in some sort of an expectation. How dreary and 
cheerless you and I and everybody would be in this old world 
if we were not buoyed up by expectation. 

At Bingen we changed trains, getting on a fast express 
train, leaving the Rhine and passing up a small valley where 
the hillsides were covered with vineyards, all trained to 
stakes for a trellis. I do not see how they can cultivate be- 
tween the rows, as the rows are twice as close as you see 
them planted in California. The grapes are very fine in fla- 
vor, containing but few seeds. As the train ambled along 
Elmer spread out our lunch, consisting of some small apple 
dumplings and some grapes that he had purchased in Co- 
logne the previous evening. As he commenced eating I heard 
him exclaim with much enthusiasm, "This is fit for a king!" 
The country became real hilly. The villages, always close 
together, were gray with age, and as we rode along, with the 
city of Worms not very far away, I thought of Martin Luth- 
er, who, more than any other man, made it possible for Ger- 
many to be the great progressive nation of Northern Eu- 
rope. Then it took a Bismarck, a man of iron will, of great 
foresight and indomitable courage, to mould and unite op- 
posing factions into this (as I see it) wonderful German na- 
tion. The hillsides again are covered with apple trees and 
some forest. We came to red soil and stone quarries, where 
the building stone looked like red sandstone. Much quarry- 
ing was in progress. For the first time in Europe, since we 
landed in Glasgow, as the morning mists cleared away, could 
we say that the clouds were gone. A cool, clear, beautiful 
September day, with just a little rippling breeze, enough to 
catch each leaf and twig, enough to play a melody on na- 
ture's harp of golden strings. More priceless than diamonds, 
of more value than pearls, are our hearts if they are tuned 
by forces springing from above. Entrancing nature, how I 
love thee ! Every landscape has something fair to me ; every 
cloud is only a golden crown, to sail away with by and by. 



FROM MOSCOW TO MILAN. »1 

The valley narrowed to very sharp hillsides, covered with 
beautiful forests of pine. After passing Neustadt we came 
into a level farming country, and again very old-looking vil- 
lages, only a little way apart. One new feature in the land- 
scape was some Lombardy poplar trees. We were in a vast 
plain of fertile land, with not a hill or mountain in sight, as 
our train sped along towards Strassburg. We came to a 
hop-growing region, passing hundreds of acres. The hops 
were gathered and the vines were dead. In some fields the 
poles were gathered and stacked up like a bivouac of arms ; 
in others, they were yet standing. I never saw such long 
poles used in hop-growing America. They were fully thirty 
feet high. 

We entered through fortifications into Strassburg. These 
fortifications had a moat in front of them full of water. At 
each city were passengers getting on and off the train, other 
trains coming and going, the hundreds of all sorts of people, 
the many amusing incidents, the different traits in human 
character displayed, with the hustle, life and activity, inter- 
est everybody, and are one of the charms of travel, especially 
in a foreign land. 

Soon after leaving Strassburg we saw to the right some 
small yet wonderfully pretty mountains. We were approach- 
ing the Alps on the northwest corner or side. All the rest 
of the afternoon, like a panorama, I watched their contour, 
the rapidity of change, their sides covered with forest or 
farm, and their unfolding, or rather enlarging, process, as 
we swept by mountain after mountain, until by their altitude 
and abruptness of pinnacle or crag they betokened to us their 
nearness to, and a part of, Alpine mountains. 

At 5 o'clock we arrived at Basel, in the edge of Switzer- 
land. Here our luggage was inspected, and we changed 
trains after waiting about an hour. Three times we had 
passed into Germany, circling the empire, until we began to 
feel at home among its people. We were among another peo- 
ple, not quite so regular in feature, of shorter build, and 
on the average a little plainer in their looks. As we rode 



92 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

away from Basel we soon left the banks of the Rhine and 
its valley, which for a short distance we had found again, 
and began passing up a lovely little valley, with apple trees 
scattered around, white houses with green blinds, pastures 
as green as ever grew, through tunnels, around mountains 
and across the country, until darkness shut out the scene. 

Just before 9 o'clock in the evening our train reached Lu- 
cerne. We walked about to get a moderate-priced room to 
our liking among the hotels. We saw a pretty lake and 
steamers on it, and we wanted a room where we could look 
out upon the lake. There were lots of people walking about , 
light and shadow everywhere. Up in the fourth story of a 
fine hotel we found a room just to our liking, looking to the 
east, catching the whole lake and two streets coming to a 
square in front. We paid our usual price, eight francs, with 
every convenience, and feather beds as heretofore, to cover 
us with at night, with electric lights and attendants. 

I arose early Sunday morning and looked to the east from 
our hotel to see the surroundings. It was before 
sunrise. This entire lake on which Lucerne is sit- 
uated at its outlet for several miles was in sight. For over 
a mile directly facing our window is a beautiful promenade, 
with trees each side, clipped low, yet sufficiently high for 
shade, and another wide walk between these trees, and a 
nicely built stone embankment aligning the lake shore. On 
the left of the walks is the carriage drive, and farther to the 
left many large, fine hotels fronting the lake. For view 
and scenery we had one of the best rooms in the city. I 
wanted to see the sunrise. I saw it was coming up over a 
high mountain and in range of the lake. Only a faint trace 
of any clouds was in sight, just a few films of cumuli, so 
fine that they looked like fine threads of gold thrown up 
against the sky; no wind, yet the lake was covered with rip- 
ples, so light that its surface looked like the tracing of an 
architect's pencil on a mirror of silver. The lake lay in 
repose, waiting for the king of day. Nearer and nearer this 
Alpine mountain inclined its top to the coming sun. The 



FROM MOSCOW TO MILAN. 93 

few threads of gold in the sky caught the coming glow and 
in turn by a reflex wave traced its golden presence over the 
little trembling ripples until this whole lake resembled a 
mass of golden butterflies shaking their wings of welcome to 
the coming sunrise. Soon the advent of the sun caught 
crag, peak and lake in its brightness and the golden colors 
melted away, as they had fulfilled their mission in the usher- 
ing in of the day. 

Handsome little steamers were sailing on the lake. After 
breakfast we started out to find an English church. We came 
to the largest church in Lucerne, where a chime of bells 
was ringing. Many people were going in, and we attempted 
to. This large church with no seats was so crowded with 
men and women standing up that we could only just get 
inside the open doors. Most of the men were standing on 
the right side and the women on the left. It is a Catholic 
church, and while standing there we concluded that they 
were offering incense, as we saw smoke ascend from near 
the altar. The singing and music were fine. We walked 
along to the English church not far away. We were just in 
time for the services, which were conducted according to 
the church of England's established way. About five hun- 
dred people were present, mostly from England, a very few 
from America, including these two stray Californians. The 
sermon was short and read from the pulpit in the manner 
of an essay. I will only quote one sentence from the sermon 
which will picture to you its standard : "Happiness is eter- 
nal life." In the closing prayer I noticed the president of 
the United States was particularly mentioned. 

We walked along the fine promenade already described. 
The day was an ideal one ; soft summer breezes, bright sun- 
shine, one of those days wherein nature attires herself — with 
her sweetest garb, finer than royalty ever wore. We were 
surprised at the scene. Here was represented some of 
the wealth and fashion of Europe. Silks, laces and diamonds, 
tan shoes (which are still worn in Europe) and white ones 
as fine and delicate in color as any slippers that Cinderella 



94 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

ever wore. Each lady had a dextrous way of lifting her 
dress skirt (some of you lady readers know how it is done), 
just a little revealing underskirts of such varied colors that 
in their blend would eclipse the rainbow, or put a peacock 
to shame. Culture, yes; perhaps not of the Boston aesthetic 
kind. Every gentleman looked like a walking fashion plate 
of the most approved Parisian style. Many of the ladies 
had on soft, brilliant costumes, assuming, as fashion often 
does, a dreamy, languid look. 

Along the water's edge we saw a row of small boats with 
a flag on each one. During the afternoon as we sat in our 
room four steamers sailed off on the lake loaded with people, 
and there were many smaller boats flitting about. 

Towards evening we started out for a walk and we wanted 
to see the sunset. Our course again lay over the promenade. 
What a change ! Wealth and fashion had disappeared, more 
than likely out riding or sailing, or getting ready for a "table 
d'hote" dinner. We now saw mostly Swiss people, neatly 
dressed as one would see in an American city. We walked 
about one and one-half miles out on the lake shore and sat 
down to see a sunset in the Alps. In the south we saw the 
largest mountains with large snow fields on them. In the 
west the principal one is Pilatus, quite close to the lake. 
Just then I heard Elmer say, "No wonder people like to 
climb these mountains and risk their lives." He had caught 
something of the charm and beauty that surround these moun- 
tains more than many others. 

The summer climate of Europe is much cooler on an aver- 
age than in America. At about 8000 feet snow lines begin 
to be perpetual. All around this mountain lake we could 
see green grass, apple trees and pieces of forest, except now 
and then some jagged rocks or a precipitous mountain side. 
The shadows cast by the setting sun began to lengthen over 
lake, forest and field, while on yonder mountain tops the 
snow fields and glaciers began to assume an unwonted bril- 
liancy in color. Their time for evening dress had arrived, 
and as the minutes passed I watched their changing colors. 




FALLEN STATUE OF RAMESES II. 

MEMPHIS. 



FROM MOSCOW TO MILAN. 95 

First a spotless white, then a pleasing gray, and later a tint 
of color rivaling a bed of coral. After sunset from our point 
of view the scene again changed. On the lake the shadows 
became sombre, and all about us the gloom of darkness was 
gathering. Upon those mountain tops the sun still lingered. 
The slopes of snow and ice became like shining fields of bur- 
nished brass. For many minutes the scene continued, then 
another change. Just before sunset those immense snow 
fields slowly changed in color to a soft red, almost as bril- 
liant as red velvet, and at sunset the sky caught their reflec- 
tion in hues of pink and red, and in turn, peak after peak, 
rock, crag, forest, field and lake, were covered with this royal 
mantle — the after-gleam of sunset, a radiance so far above 
the natural, that man can only imitate, never equal. As we 
walked back to Lucerne just before dark, we again looked 
at these giants of mountains faintly outlined against the sky. 
Peak and snow fields were there, looking so Cold and gray 
ana still that I wondered as I saw the stars twinkling so 
merrily if the reflex glory of all the sunsets on the earth was 
the cause of their twinkling twinkles. 

About 9 o'clock that evening as I sat in the window of our 
room looking out on this beautiful lake, I noticed a streak 
of coming light in the east; I watched and waited. With 
tender softness the moon, as if in apology for being the "lesser 
light," appeared, nearly full in size ; and in this clear moun- 
tain sky there came forth from the greatest electric light in 
the universe a flood of gentle sweetness wherein lovers love 
to talk the waning hours away, until their hearts are melted 
in tenderness, and promises are made unto the never-ending 
day. 

The next morning as I arose, a falling mist enveloped 
mountain, city and lake. We took a brisk walk to see that 
wonderful work of sculpture by Thorwaldson, one of the 
greatest of sculptors. On the face of a huge precipice a niche 
is cut in the rock in the form of a half circle, and at the same 
time a lion is carved out of the same rock, lying in repose as 
if asleep, as real as life. I think it is the finest piece of 



96 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

sculpture I ever saw. Even at that early hour, and in the 
falling mist, others stood in the grotto where the lion is, 
looking spell-bound at this wonderful work. We walked 
about among the many curio stores, and saw beautiful in- 
laid work on tables and chairs, and many handsome carv- 
ings in wood. These Swiss people are ingenious, and lovers 
of beauty, as in the poor peasant's home one will see bloom- 
ing flowers in their windows. We again boarded our train 
at 9 o'clock Monday morning for Milan, in Italy. We never 
left a place where our hearts were so wrapped up with its 
scenic beauty of mountain and lake as Lucerne. 

A dense fog prevented further sight-seeing. It was like 
sailing along in phantom clouds of mist, a relief, however, 
as continual sight-seeing is extremely tiresome. How re- 
freshing to lean back on the cushioned seat and let brain, 
muscle, mind and nerves take a rest. I snuggled down in 
the soft cushions, closed my eyes and sank into a sort of 
rhapsody, where in my heart I was singing little bits of song 
and I am sure nobody but the angels heard me, except Om- 
nipresence. A sudden jolt of the train awakened me after 
two hours of solid rest. 

We were near the head of the lake. The mist was lifting 
and on the hillsides was the usual scattering of apple trees 
and the greenest of grass. What a profusion of wild flow- 
ers, as fresh and bright as any that ever bloomed in the 
Garden of Eden. The forests of fir are very fine in foliage 
and of the darkest green. I have seen fir forests in Canada, 
British Columbia and in Alaska, but none rivaling these in 
beauty. 

The home life of these hardy mountain people, their quaint 
houses and way of living up in these mountain valleys, were 
very interesting. In some places we noticed many piles of 
small rocks heaped up so the grass for grazing could have 
free growth. I became convinced that in all things this 
mountain scenery was the finest I had ever seen, and I have 
looked at most of the principal mountains north of Mexico 
and south of the Arctic circle in America. Here is boldness 



FROM MOSCOW TO MILAN. 97 

until many of these mountain sides and tops are too steep to 
climb. At Erstfield a glacier was quite near between two 
mountain peaks. 

Our train passed through tunnels, some of them built on a 
curve. Three times we passed one village, until we were 
far above it, as we had gained grade sufficient to catch an- 
other valley. There are in all fifty-six tunnels, aggregating 
twenty-five miles. The scenery was charming; villages in 
little nooks, with apple trees around them, valleys and gorges 
so narrow and the mountains so steep that sunrise or sun- 
set occurs near noon; in other places wide slopes and trees 
and grass near the snow line. 

Away from the line of travel, where money is not being 
scattered, the people are poor, as they have not much to 
sell. We entered St. Gothard tunnel, piercing this range in 
solid granite. Our train, running quite rapidly, was seven- 
teen minutes, as our watches indicated, in passing through. 
As we began to descend on the other side we found a suc- 
cession of tunnels and mountains high and rugged. The 
houses began to change. Their roofs were flat stones rudely 
dressed, with flat stones for the ridge, and the villages looked 
so old and gray that I really believe many of the houses 
were built hundreds of years ago, as their windows were 
just little ones of about four small lights. There are many 
chestnut trees, with nuts on them, also vineyards ; many little 
streams of water came rushing down the mountain sides. 

At Lugano several passengers got off the train, as some of 
the Italian lakes are near, yet we were still in Switzerland. 
Here we came to a very pretty lake, and passed around it 
and out into an open country, coming to a station called 
Chiasso. We were now in Italy, and were marshalled into 
the custom house, our luggage examined, and were required 
to sign our tickets, then turned out into a little place in the 
station, fenced in, where we had just room enough to stand 
up, and waited until an Italian train was made up before 
anybody was allowed to get out of this cooped-up place. 
What a scramble for seats in the train as soon as we were 



98 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

let out! We just had the privilege of standing up for a few 
miles, until we could get seats. 

It was getting dark, and the first town we came to had a 
chain of electric lights running up a mountain. We arrived 
at Milan at 8 o'clock in the evening, and what a crowd of 
people there was just outside of the gate to pass in. They 
are excitable, like the French people. We found a German 
on the train who could speak English a little. It seems real 
strange to hear lots of talking all day, and yet not under- 
stand a word. When this German found out we were 
going around the world and could talk nothing but Eng- 
lish, he said : "We would call this lots of cheek up in Ger- 
many." 



IV. 

from Rome to 6mi(rna. 



Next morning at Milan I was awakened as early as four 
o'clock by the ringing of many bells in the cathedrals and 
churches. I suppose it was early morning mass. While com- 
pleting my toilet I noticed our three suit cases and an English 
hold all sitting on the floor, and, remembering that we had gone 
thousands of miles in Europe with only one of our smallest 
satchels, leaving the rest at Cologne, and wanting nothing, I 
said to Elmer: "What is in these satchels, anyway?" Quick 
as a flash the reply came, "Everything under the sun !" We 
are just packing a lot of things around the world, and many 
of them we will never look at. His reply was so funny that 
I sat down and laughed so long that I could hardly talk. 
How unwise we were ! We were wishing somebody would 
steal part of them. 

Milan has seven miles of fortifications and is a very old 
city, yet it is the most prosperous in all Italy. One reason 
is that there is more manufacturing; another that it is 
in a more fertile country, being in the center of the plains 
of Lombardy. 

Early in the morning we walked to the cathedral, the sec- 
ond largest church in Europe. The roof is one mass of 
spires. There are about 2000 carved statues on the outside 
and some 3000 out and in, including the other pieces of carv- 
ing. The three large stained windows behind the choir are 
as large, except curved at the top, as the side of an ordinary 
two-story house; we admired it very much. To give you 

LoFC 



100 A CAUFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

some idea as to the size, there are 52 pillars 12 feet in 
diameter, to support roof and interior. For a long time we 
wandered around these immense pillars, looking at the dome 
inside 220 feet high and the nave 155 feet high. As I am 
writing this we have seen the costliest and four of the larg- 
est churches in the world, yet this is to our eyes the hand- 
somest. The old stained windows, their wonderful figures, 
each complete, not just stained glass but all real paintings 
in the coloring of the glass. It is about 480 feet long and 
240 feet wide. We returned to our hotel, packed up our 
luggage, ordered a cab and at 9 o'clock we were on a train 
and car, marked as it is spelled here, "Roma." 

As our train rolled away from Milan out into a flat level 
country, we saw for miles meadows and fields laid off into 
small tracts and trees on their edges. The land fertile 
and water close to the surface. Some of the fields have fur- 
rows for irrigation across them. The trees were quite un- 
even, as they cut the tops off for wood. One place we saw 
some cottonwoods, not many; in places were peach 
and plum trees. The soil is a light clay. I saw four yoke 
of oxen pulling one plow. As we came to larger, dry look- 
ing fields dust was flying on the country roads. The country 
changed. We passed along a river bed, almost dry, where 
women were washing clothes on flat rocks by the pools of 
water, and spreading the clothes to dry on the gravel. The 
hills on either side were covered with vineyards, all trained 
to stakes. A train load of soldiers passed us while standing 
at a station, standing up in the cars holloing loudly and wav- 
ing their hats. Their white uniforms looked dirty and much 
in contrast with a car of officers on the same train, all 
dressed in blue uniforms with gold and red stripes. Up along 
this dry bed of a river, with little water in it, into a narrow 
canyon, hills getting large enough for mountains, through tun- 
nels into another valley, where high mountain sides were 
covered with terraced vineyards, and clouds gathering. Then 
through a long tunnel into another valley, with brilliant 
warm sunshine, and not a cloud in sight. 



FROM ROME TO SMYRNA. 101 

As we passed along, many of the hills and mountains 
seemed to have a church, monastery or shrine built on them. 
Then we came to a small town with fortifications behind it, 
on a range of hills, gray with age, I saw oleander, palm, 
fig and a few very poor looking orange trees. Then through 
another tunnel and into the city of Genoa, the birthplace of 
Columbus. Climbing hills on the left lay the city, with the 
sun shining brightly and the air full of charm and warmth, 
a possession belonging only to southern climes. As we left 
Genoa the mountain sides to the left were covered with olive 
trees. The higher mountains were bare and brown, and 
the grass that once grew was dry. There was no wind, not 
enough to rustle the leaves, and on our right the Mediterra- 
nean sea looked as placid and calm as any lake you ever 
saw. Unlike the great oceans, there are no large, rolling 
waves, only a small tide of perhaps a foot, and just little 
lazy ripples. The most beautiful and historic sea to sail on 
in the world. The gardens had many tomatoe vines trel- 
lised up like garden beans. We left the coast and rode 
through a rolling country, with the hills and slopes covered 
with vineyards and olive trees all intermingled together. 
Then we passed a country where everything was so dry and 
rocky that nothing coul'd grow. Farther along at every sta- 
tion we saw great dray loads of white marble, and off to the 
left whole mountain sides of marble, as white as any snow 
field ever seen. Villages are many miles apart, each with its 
own church, with the cross on top proclaiming the kind. 
On the country roads, dusty and poor compared with other 
roads in Europe, there were mostly ox teams, some of the 
tongues of their carts crooked upward at the end way 
above the oxen's backs. The gloom of night settled around 
us and just before midnight, as the moon rose in the east, 
casting its quiet, mellow look over hill, valley and mountain, 
our train darted through some walls and we were in great, 
imperial Rome, once and for many years the greatest city 
in the world and its proud capital. Jumping into a cab we 
were hastily driven to the hotel we selected, peering with cu- 



102 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING. THE GLOBE. 

rious eyes into the strange streets. As the driver came to 
the hotel he blew a long whistle. The hotel entrance lit up, 
porters grabbed our baggage. We made terms with the clerk 
for our room, as he spoke a little English. We were whisked 
up stairs and soon were sleeping as quietly in this city of ro- 
mance, history and tradition as we ever did in America. 

The ruins of ancient Rome are so great, its history so 
mighty that as I take up my pen to give you a little peep at 
some of the wonderful ruins, and weave into the picture a 
little of thought, association and feeling, I am appalled at the 
undertaking. We walked to St. Peter's church, said to have 
Seen built on the Campus Martus, at the spot St. Peter was 
crucified, with his head downward at his own request. The 
approach to the church is on a colossal scale. Some two or 
three acres of ground are in an open circle, with immense 
pillars in a semi-circle forming support for a roof all capped 
with mighty statues on each side. There are at least, I be- 
lieve, about 300 of these pillars, yet I did not count them. 
Up many stone steps we ascended to the church, looking at 
gigantic statues on the roof and all about us of apostles, 
kings, popes and saints. We walked into the largest and 
costliest church on earth, costing over $200,000,000. Let me 
give you the size inside, 835 feet long, 330 feet wide, and 447 
feet high. There are no stained windows, yet the gilt and 
gold with precious stones and alabaster columns, together 
with its vast size, awaken a feeling of wonder. The costly 
altars with their lights burning and worshipers before them 
continually during the day is an impressive sight. Down a 
little short stairway, where lights are perpetually kept burn- 
ing, is Peter's tomb, in the center of the church. Many of 
the faithful go down this stairway, an attendant opens the 
door and they look in and cross themselves. There among 
the two dozen or more lights there is at the foot of the stair- 
way two alabaster columns supporting two lights, and I no- 
ticed that the attendant struck a match for each party and 
had them look through the alabaster towards the match. 
Transparent alabaster is very rare and expensive. An at- 




REBUILDING RUINS, 

KARNAK, EGYPT. 



FROM ROME TO SMYRNA. 103 

tendant took us into some chapels and the cardinal's room 
and pulled away some curtains on the walls, showing us some 
of the grandest paintings in the world by Raphael. Bible 
scenes looking as real as life. Marble floors, mosaic pave- 
ments and great carved statues on pedestals or in niches in 
the walls, illustrating the history of the Catholic church, 
greeted us everywhere. We gave this attendant one franc 
and told him, who understood our language a little, we 
wanted to climb to the top of the dome. He called another 
attendant, who took us to the stairway and said a few words 
to its keeper, who showed us that permission to ascend the 
dome must be obtained. We turned to go out but he waved 
us back with his hand and we climbed to the top of the dome 
from the inside, then by a door to the outside. A little 
money opens doors without formal permission. Below us, on 
and about its seven hills, so signally mentioned in prophecy, 
lay the modern city of Rome, of about 450,000 population. 
How mighty when millions of people lived here. We traced 
the muddy Tiber in its crooked winding way through the 
city. We saw in the distance the historical Appian way in 
its approach to and entrance, by one of the fourteen gates, 
through the walls. 

To the south and west of Rome the country is level, to the 
northeast the Alban mountains, and between us and the 
mountains the Roman Campagna. Every spot is historical. 
The present city is unlike other cities, not much color, gray 
roofs, no smoke and several arched bridges crossing the 
Tiber. We also walked around on the roof of the church, 
looked down upon the Vatican with its fine gardens and 
playing fountains, where the Pope lives with his retinue of 
two thousand persons about him and eleven hundred rooms 
to put them in. 

We wanted to follow Paul over the Ossian Way out of 
the West Gate, but since Paul's time called St. Paul's Gate, 
to where he was beheaded two miles away from the city 
walls. We succeeded in finding a cabman who was ac- 
quainted with the route and could talk a little English. We 



104 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

commenced at the Mamertine prison, where Paul was in- 
carcerted. We descended into the very dungeon ; (in Paul's 
time there was no stairway leading to it, only an aperture 
in the top, which we saw, large enough to let a man down 
or his food through.) We had to have candles in this ter- 
rible place, almost circular, about twelve feet across. This 
prison is cut out of solid rock and on one side there is a 
passage way, where we saw three holes through the rock 
for the ropes used to strangle prisoners with. This secret 
passage way we saw extended to the Tiber, under the old 
city, where the prisoners' bodies were thrown in. It made 
us shudder in this prison, yet brave, patient Paul withstood 
all, through his and our Christ. We rode down a crooked, 
narrow street to the banks of the Tiber. When Paul was 
led out of the prison he doubtless saw the great Roman Fo- 
rum, the palaces of the kings or emperors on Palatine Hill 
and great triumphal arches which stood just by the prison. 
One thing that Paul saw (except the clouds, if any that 
day in the sky) was the Temple of Hercules, standing near 
the river's brink and built about one hundred years before 
Christ. The roof is new but the pillars, except one, are 
there just the same. We passed out of the old gate and drove 
along in an almost open country. We came to St. Paul's 
church, where it is claimed the remains of St. Paul are. It- 
is the most costly church of its size in the world, costing 
over sixty-five millions of dollars. It is constructed of the 
finest marble from Africa, in all tints and colors, rivaling 
the rainbow. Upon its sides are the paintings of all the 
Popes, 287 of them; and there are great marble statues of 
all the apostles. Some of the finest paintings the earth affords 
we saw here, one, the Ascension, another Heaven opened and 
the angels flying around at the stoning of Stephen. The en- 
tire ceiling is covered with gold and underneath pillars of 
alabaster, some of them transparent, the finest that the earth 
affords. We were simply filled with wonder, and almost tip- 
toed about amid all this splendor. We drove along a little 
narrow country road with scarcely a house in sight. Still 



PROM ROME TO SMYRNA. 105 

following the route Paul traveled to his place of execution, 
and over in the dry brown fields I saw some beautiful wild 
flowers ; I alighted from the carriage and gathered some of 
them. A strange, sad tenderness came into my heart, a few 
tear drops fell, then as I looked at hill, mountain and valley, 
overarched with dark looking storm clouds, these beautiful 
wild flowers of pink, purple, blue and yellow again caught 
my attention and thought. 

All over central and southern Italy and on every road we 
traveled in and about Rome, nowhere did I see so many wild 
flowers as on this Ossian Way outside of the city's gates. 

I 

Did nature hear the prayer of Paul 
And wear these royal robes for all? 
She truly did, as I could see 
With the eye of sight given by Thee. 

The angels hovered over all the Way 

As Paul walked along that eventful day — 

Something of his triumph as he ran the race 

I caught from these flowers through bounteous Grace. 

i 

Worth more to me than the entire cost of my journey 
around the worTd was this one simple touch of nature, so 
deep that my soul came in contact with nature's God, and I 
was fed with food sweeter than ambrosia or nectar. 

We rode along over the dusty road. In falling cadence the 
south wind blew, carrying portentious looking clouds along 
in fitful gusts of glee. Just as we rode up to the entrance 
of a place called the "Three Fountains" a few large drops 
of rain came bouncing through the air. As the cab halted 
we jumped out, a porter opened the gate and summoned a 
friar to attend us. A few hundred feet away, up an avenue 
of trees and flowers, we saw three beautiful little chapels, 
fully twenty feet apart. On the right is, to our surprise, a 
forest of eucalyptus trees, 150,000 of them, covering several 
acres. Except some small parks in the city, this forest of 



106 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

trees ,twenty-eight years old, is the only semblance of a 
forest to be seen anywhere in the vicinity of Rome. We 
came to the three little chapels. Then, seeing that we ex- 
pected their history, or legend, as you may be pleased to call 
it, the friar told us in broken English, showing us the 
block of stone on which Paul was beheaded, that as "his 
head rolled off it bounded three times, and at each time a 
fountain of water sprang from the ground." We drank 
from one of the fountains, yet we saw nor heard no water 
running in any of them. In one of the chapels was some 
Mosaic pavement, which he said "was two thousand years 
old," surrounded with a chain. We returned to the cab, with 
orders to take us to one of the Catacombs. We drove along 
towards the Appian Way. There are several hundred acres 
of these underground tombs. We procured a guide, who 
furnished us with two torches each. Lighting one apiece we 
began to descend into the rocks of the earth, as these won- 
derful tombs and passage ways are dug in soft rock; per- 
haps harder than sandstone, as the rock is dark colored. We 
expected little and saw much. We followed our guide for 
one hour up and down, usually in passages high enough to 
walk in, but narrow. It is the most grewsome sight I ever 
saw. In some places three stories, if you may call it 
that, one under the other exist; I shuddered with horror and 
the odor was very nauseating, and yet people lived and died 
in these dark, dismal underground chambers and passages. 
We came to little chapels and arched chambers where we 
saw in fresco on the walls Bible scenes. Daniel in the lion's 
den, Jonah thrown overboard — also the great fish throwing 
him out, animals coming out of the Ark, birds eating grapes, 
peacocks, animals, children and many other scenes traced on 
the walls. We saw the old lamps they used, their water 
jars, places to cook, and all along these passage ways were 
hundreds, yes, thousands of little niches cut in the rock, 
where either a streak of white ashes lay, or bones. I touched 
one of the bones ; to my horror it crumbled to ashes. A vast 
charnel house of the dead. It is calculated that if all the 



FROM ROME TO SMYRNA. 107 

passages were put in one continuous line they would extend 
nearly six hundred miles — I suppose we walked about two 
miles. By different layers of ashes there must have been 
in some of the niches several people laid away until the great 
resurrection day. We could only detect these ashes by their 
edge, as over the top a gray dust, the color of all the rocks 
about us, had been settling for centuries. We were in con- 
tact with the dim, misty past. We began to realize what 
centuries mean. As I look back, the memory of this hour 
is more vivid to me, and more real than any mere painting 
even of "Dante's Inferno." We were glad to emerge from 
the bowels of the earth and ascend again. How beautiful 
the light seemed, and as we shook off the dust and mold of 
centuries, it seemed like a foretaste of the resurrection to 
come. We drove along by the entrances to other parts of the 
Catacombs. The whole country about us under a layer of 
surface soil was originally one solid rock and honeycombed 
with these tombs of the past. 

We drove farther out on this road made famous by the 
coming of Paul over it on his way to Rome. We saw old 
ruins each side, great piles of brick and stone with traces 
of marble facing. Some were very large, others smaller; no 
regular line of them — just dropped down anywhere. They are 
tombs of the rulers of Rome and other noted men and women 
of old Roman times. The largest one is the tomb of Cro- 
esus' wife ; another one we particularly noted is the tomb of 
Seneca. 

Over to the left, two or three miles away, are some of the 
old aqueducts, still standing. Each side of us the fields were 
bare. No trees except a few bushes clinging about the 
tombs, and now and then the poorest of peasants' homes. 
Grain stubble, or grass dried up, came close to the Way, 
and around the tombs. I walked from the carriage to a 
small rise in the ground to get a view. No flowers were to 
be seen, but bits of broken brick and rock everywhere. I 
returned to the carriage and we started for the city. While 
riding along Elmer suddenly said : "Look at that centipede." 



108 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

Crawling over one of my shoes was the largest centipede I 
ever saw. I had disturbed him in his lair while walking, 
he had crawled up in my clothing and was now seeking his 
resting place in the tombs. How I shuddered, knowing how 
poisonous they are. The driver took him from the carriage 
and killed him. 

As we rode back to the city I thought of the mighty armies 
that had traveled over this Appian Way, of its many changes ; 
one of the most historical roads on the face of the earth. At 
the city's gates officials are stationed to tax dutiable articles. 
They have long rapiers, and as a load of hay or straw comes 
along, they thrust them through to see if something is con- 
cealed. We walked around in the great Roman Forum, 
and stood where Cicero and Cato talked in words of burning 
eloquence. Nothing but ruins, but the pavements are there, 
and shattered pillars, cornices and foundations excited our 
wonder and admiration. We saw the Arch of Titus, erected 
in the first century A. D., with the picture of the golden candle- 
stick on it, the only authentic picture in existence, a copy 
for all other pictures. 

We hired a guide and walked among the ruins of em- 
perors' palaces on Palatine Hill. The extent and magnifi- 
cence of these ruins, with the Stadium passing through the 
center, and many underground passages, is simply aston- 
ishing. We saw beautiful frescoes still clinging to the walls, 
and walked over mosaic pavements that echoed to the tread 
of the mighty men of Rome over two thousand years ago. 
Just here, near the Stadium, are the ruins of the Judgement 
Hall, and I stood where Paul and Peter were Condemned to 
death by Nero. We walked into the Coliseum, one of the 
seven wonders of the world, finished after the destruction of 
Jerusalem by Titus, as thousands of Jews were brought pris- 
oners to Rome and compelled to work on this great structure. 
I counted sixteen stairways, from twelve to sixteen feet 
wide, coming from the outside and leading to different tiers 
of seats, with landings for each tier. Immense columns or 
pillars were the only obstructions to entering on any side. . 




ARCH OF TITUS. 
ROME, 



FROM ROME TO SMYRNA. 109 

I stood over the arena, and thought of the many thousands 
of Christians that were fed to the lions, for over two hundred 
years, as each night there gathered 100,000 of these cruel 
heathen Romans to exult over their cries and groans, as they 
were torn in pieces. 

Near the Coliseum stands a great arch erected by Constan- 
tine on one of the city's roads. Loaded teams are very fre- 
quently passing under this arch, linking the past to the 
present by the lapse of many centuries. Near by was the 
great Circus Maximus, where chariot races were run, large 
enough to hold one million of spectators. There was a square 
mile laid off for games and sports, and also room for sixteen 
hundred baths, all constructed of the finest of marble, with 
great pipes having silver mouths to deliver hot water of any 
degree of temperature. Mighty Rome with its once four 
millions or more of population, its emperor living in a house 
lined with gold, its five hundred senators living in silver 
houses, its environments taking in the seven hills which are 
nothing more than the seven heads of prophecy of Revela- 
tions, and in connection with other kingdoms representing the 
ten horns. Would you know its past history and final destiny 
turn to the book of Daniel, in the Old Testament, and read 
about tine Iron Empire, then turn to Revelations and find out 
what became of the seven heads and ten horns. 

One cannot travel a block or square in Rome without 
meeting one or more priests dressed in black, and friars 
dressed in brown, always in skirts hanging clear to their 
heels. There are nearly three hundred churches and services 
going on most of the time. About five o'clock every morning 
you will be awakened by the ringing of many church bells. 
We looked at many obelisks brought from Egypt, covered 
with hieroglyphics. We saw many monuments and much 
statuary, a partial embellishment of its wonderful history. 
We had read of Rome and its record, yet in our quiet Cali- 
fornia home we had no realizing conception, until we gath- 
ered from its stupendous ruins, the magnitude of its build- 
ings, the costly appointments of its palaces, the towering 



110 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

height of its triumphal arches, the carved rostrums and the 
immense ampitheatres, all this only ruins, yet we looked 
upon them with awe and admiration. What could the picture 
be when it was filled out; more than any Utopian dreamer 
ever thought or dreamed. 

We learned that the cholera was still raging in Egypt, in- 
cluding Port Said, being easy enough to get there but not to 
get out. We could get to Jerusalem by traveling nearly two 
thousand miles over three railways and on three steam 
ships and with delays would take about eighteen days. There 
was no alternative unless we wanted to run against the 
cholera in Egypt, be quarantined ten days and fumigated like 
scale on an orange tree to get away. 

We purchased our tickets to Jerusalem, costing about nine- 
teen pounds each over this roundabout route, and boarded our 
train in Rome for Naples. 

It was one of those delightful days that occur everywhere. 
The sun and the clouds in the place of sparkling light and 
shadow were each striving for the mastery, while all the 
landscape o'er there was a flood of genial warmth. As uui 
train emerged from the city walls, passing directly into the 
country, the grass was dry and brown. The fields were quite 
large, many of them covered with grain stubble. A few scat- 
tering eucalyptus trees about the poor looking homes and 
small stations. We passed quite close to the old aqueducts 
of Rome, and for a distance not far from the Appian Way. 
We were traversing the famous Roman Campagna, a fertile 
and comparatively level country. Then we commenced to 
circle about its southern edges, where vineyards began to 
appear, some of them trimmed about six feet high. Occasion- 
ally a weeping willow or an oak tree. The country became 
very hilly, and I saw many caves in the rocks, with people 
living in some of them, others used for stables. The hills 
were very dry, and as we passed up a rolling valley I saw 
bands of sheep grazing in the stubble fields and some droves 
of black hogs. The stacks of grain by the little old villages 
(looking as old and gray as the rocks), were not threshed 



FROM ROME TO SMYRNA. 111 

yet. There were a very few stacks of hay to be seen. The 
villages are perched on the tops of mountains or high hills, 
and were so gray and regular in appearance that they almost 
looked like ledges of rock. The country was very rocky. 
No trees, and the villages a long distance apart. The few 
houses scattered between the villages were very rude in 
construction, poor in appearance, and heaps of rocks were 
scattered everywhere. This kind of country continued for 
many miles. We stopped at a small country station. I 
walked up and down the platform. I looked aloft, clouds 
and sunshine were woven together, blended in one harmo- 
nious color. 

Light and shadow had ceased to flow, 
All nature was in a sweet repose; 
Calm and tranquil in its rest, 
As an infant on its mother's breast. 

Refreshed and rested as the train sped along (for I had 
come in contact with nature in one of its melting moods, 
where I can always gather such delicious food), I now saw a 
new feature in the vineyards, each vine planted by a small 
tree. The trees are mulberry trees and the leaves are used to 
feed silk worms. When they get by their vigorous growth then 
the vines, using the trees for stakes, have their best growth. 
Soon we were in a very mountainous country, where very lit- 
tle of anything could grow. Then about noon we came into 
a region where whole mountainsides were covered with olive 
trees, planted among the rocks. Again, no forests, whole 
mountain ranges as bare as the day they were thrown up 
from the bowels of the earth, with little soil, mostly bare 
rocks. 

For many miles before we reached Naples we passed 
through a level country. The mulberry trees are large, 
planted in rows ten or twelve feet apart, and the grape vines 
were trained from one tree to another, high enough to see 
the fine bunches of grapes hanging there ready to gather. 



112 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

In some fields only the rows of grapes and trees and gardens 
between. We came into the station at Naples, the largest 
city in Italy. We climbed to some of the upper streets and 
looked out on the bay of Naples. In the distance is the island 
of Capri. This placid sea with just little ripples enough to 
sparkle as the sun caught them, lay before us like a painting 
dropped from the skies. Why write about this beautiful bay? 
Poets and writers in all ages have gone into ecsvacies over the 
bay of Naples, until it has become a trite saying, "See Naples 
and die." Let them write in jubilant tones; we will 
continue our journey and gather thought and beauty 
from fields where it is better gleaning. The fashionable ho- 
tels are located along the sea with a wide drive in front, 
then a sea wall. Many of them close in the summer. Naples 
is not a clean city. One will see all sorts of carts — four 
wheels to any wagon used in business is scarce. I saw one 
cart with a large load with an ox hitched in the 
center, a horse one side and a donkey on the other, all pulling 
together. Most of the small carts are drawn by single don- 
keys. Every night one will see droves of goats driven along 
in the city and some cows; the goat or cow is milked in the 
street as the milk is sold. We saw people living in upper 
stories of houses letting down baskets with a rope and dishes 
in them to get the milk. The goats walk along the crowded 
sidewalks, dodging along just as a person would. Each drove 
having leaders with bells attached. We saw a funny funeral 
procession just at sundown. A very fine looking coffin was 
carried along on the shoulders of some bearers, followed by 
a score or more of men dressed in white, with their heads 
wrapped in white and so arranged that each man appeared to 
wear very long white whiskers. They stopped at a church 
and the street filled up with women and children, some of 
them crowding into the church. As the coffin was carried 
in these ghost-like looking men chanted or sang around the 
coffin, each one holding a torch aloft. This continued a little 
while and then the very fine looking coffin was brought out 
and carried away and a plain coffin was put in a hearse and 



FROM ROME TO SMYRNA. 113 

driven off unattended. We concluded the fine coffin was only 
hired for the street procession to the church. 

We concluded to visit Pompeii and climb Mount Vesu- 
vius in one day, and so started early Tuesday morning on a 
train for Pompeii. Passing along the edge of the sea for 
several miles by villages and gardens, we came to a small 
station, where our guide procured a carriage to drive two or 
three miles to Pompeii. We passed many macaroni factories 
and up little narrow streets swarming with carts, men, women' 
children, fl.es, dogs and dirt. Driving like a Jehu and crack- 
ing his whip like a pistol, we soon reached Pompeii. As you 
all know it was suddenly destroyed one day in A. D 79 by 
this volcano, or rather covered up several feet deep, was for- 
gotten and left buried until about one hundred and fifty 
years ago. The impression of this city with its streets, foun- 
tains, baths, water pipes, theaters, stores and private houses 
all one story high, now deserted, except by guards and cu- 
rious visitors, was singularly strange. The streets were very 
narrow and large stones for crossing them made the char- 
iots all keep in one place, and we saw ruts worn with 
wheels into the solid rock pavement three and four inches 
deep. The water pipes were made of lead hammered into 
shape. Much work in fresco, some of it handsome, and the 
pavements were as bright as when their owners walked in 
and out. What curious ideas we often form of a place be- 
fore seeing it. I supposed that we would have to look at 
Pompeii under the ground. The excavations simply mean all 
the ashes and lava is shoveled out of the streets and houses 
and there is Pompeii almost as it stood two thousand years' 
ago, just as real and on top of the ground as it ever was 
and only a few walls are broken in and down. We saw 
their rude stones fitted together to grind flour, their wine 
shops, their jugs and samples of almost every article they 
used. Even loaves of bread found in their ovens Their 
way of living as revealed by looking at their houses, where 
you can almost imagine they have just moved out, is worth 
a trip to Naples to see. Some of the people were wealthy, as 



114 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

they had flower gardens in an inner court, houses built 
around them and richly decorated rooms. How strange it 
all seemed. 

We saw the work of uncovering still going on in Pompeii. 
It is not hard, as, unlike Herculaneum, it was covered with 
ashes and pumice stone. We saw old wine shops with their 
jars in place as real as today. We saw fountains in the 
streets, places for people to drink water, and the stone 
casings where they leaned on their hands to drink, worn to 
a hollow. We walked about in their theaters, temples and 
well appointed bath rooms, arranged for either hot or cold 
water. What a little span of time life is, yet there have been 
many spans of life since that tragic August day in 79. Vil- 
lages are located all around Pompeii today as it is five or six 
miles from the foot of the volcano. Life is always eventful, 
full of tragedy, and you and I are actors in the drama. These 
Pompeiian people have played their part. We were studying 
the cast of their play. We found much to condemn, very 
little of approval, and as our guide summoned the carriage 
and we were driven rapidly towards Mount Vesuvius, I mused 
as never before, catching in my mind the grasp of centuries, 
enabling me to look back over all the ages that are past. 
Then with one mighty sweep of vision, I saw the race, on 
down to the end of time, and I said "all I want is Thy ap- 
proval." 

For some distance we passed along a village street en- 
closed with walls, then we came to the starting place, where 
we exchanged the carriage for horses. Two very ordinary 
looking horses were brought to our side and we mounted the 
steeds. The street was full of people to see us start off. 
Boys were asking us for money, and offering little longer 
sticks, expecting if we took them to get a few centimes. 
The drivers whipped up the steeds, catching hold of them by 
the end of their tails, holloing "R" at the top of their voices, 
and away we went up the street, amid this babel, jolting hard 
enough to shake our ribs out of place. As soon as I could 
recover breath I looked at the long distance to travel on an 




?!*3*i«J 




£ 




t 



STREET IN POMPEII. 

CHARIOT RUTS FROM FOLK To FIVE INCHES IN DEPTH. 



FROM ROME TO SMYRNA. 115 

ascending slope, then at the abrupt climb to reach the top, 
and my heart sank within me. Was I equal to the emergency? 
I saw before me one of the hardest physical efforts of my 
life. I resolved to carry it through. 

We passed along for about two miles fine looking vineyards 
each side of the road. They were gathering the vintage 
and in places we saw them treading out the wine with their 
feet. Some fig trees with fine fruit on them were scattered 
by the roadside and through the vineyards. We met women 
and men carrying great baskets of grapes and figs on their 
heads. Then we came to ridges of lava, and as we climbed 
the slope we passed away from the vineyards and into hun- 
dreds of acres of little pine trees, many of them not over 
two feet tall, planted in rows. The large pine trees of Italy 
are very different from any I have yet seen in other parts of 
the world. At their tops they spread out like a Japanese 
umbrella tree, and are light colored. 

Soon we came to a place where the horses could carry us 
no farther, we alighted and, taking our coats off, com- 
menced to climb. We had been in the saddle about one and 
one-half hours, and it would take that much more time of 
hard climbing to reach the summit. How we toiled up, 
step by step. In places the ashes being soft and yielding to 
our feet made it still harder. The ascent became so steep 
that we had to zigzag our course. As I would stop to catch 
breath how wistfully I looked to the top. We struggled on 
and just as the crest came in view, with an almost perpen- 
dicular climb to get there, our guide told us for the first time 
that there was a government tax to pay, if we went farther. 
Others coming down said they could not see into the crater 
as the wind was not favorable, failing to blow the smoke 
and vapor aside. Elmer and I held a council and concluded 
that unless the volcano began to eject red hot lava we were 
going to stand on the crest of its crater. Inch by inch we 
crawled up, and there stood the government tax collector 
silhouetted against the sky, standing on a ledge of rock, 
once molten lava. We paid him nine francs for us and the 



(16 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

guide and went on. Time, persistence and grit will overcome 
obstacles, therefore at about 2 o'clock in the afternoon, we 
took the last step and were standing on the crest of the 
crater encircling the most noted volcano in the world. 

I looked down. At first I could see nothing but an abyss 
of wreathing, circling vapor or smoke of silvery whiteness. 
Now and then a puff of it would catch us, and its fumes 
were similar to the brimstone you would use to smoke bees 
out of a tree or hive. In a few minutes a puff of wind 
blowing downwards caught the inner walls of the crater 
near where we stood, and we saw a long ways into its depths, 
revealing one of the most wonderful sights of my life. Bed'' 
of burning sulphur, jets of steam and smoke, and the almost 
perpendicular walls of the crater looked like a crust of 
smoky ashes and cinders just covering up the strength of 
its fiery master, ready at any moment to startle the world 
with its convulsions. I stood spellbound. I was in the 
presence of one of the mightiest forces of nature. Hitherto 
its greatest forces I had ever seen were in floods rushing to 
the sea, in the uncontrollable wind, or as nature often loves 
to do, gather its forces in some towering cloud, or clouds, and 
bombard the earth, with bolts of electric light and power, 
so brilliant that man can never imitate. Here was to me a 
new force, awe inspiring, captivating because of its power — 
yet not wholly unknown hitherto, as in my California home 
I have seen the mountains tremble, shaking clouds of dust 
into the air. I have felt the earth vibrate like the passing 
of an ocean wave. I have heard the sound of its voice in the 
rumbling earthquake. As I turned my face away from this 
sleeping, slumbering, smouldering volcano there came wrapped 
in the gentle wind as it fanned my brow, a soft and pleading 
voice : 

Do not tremble at this power; 

Be at peace this very hour. 

Again looking down into this fiery volcano, a cloud of smoke 



FROM ROME TO SMYRNA. 117 

and vapor encircled me and hidden away in its mystic depths 
there came the faintest of whispers, 



Do not love me any less, 
As I, too, have power to bless. 



It was enough. It was the God of nature speaking to me, 
bringing a quiet, restful peace into my heart as I turned 
and walked toward the foot of the mountain. Elmer and the 
guide started to run. They got to going so fast down the 
mountain they could not stop, and as I saw their coat tails 
flying I sat down on a crag of hardened lava to watch the 
result. Fortunately they kept right end up, yet as I saw them 
leaping along in such gigantic strides of twenty feet or more, 
they looked like giants trying to sail off into the realms of 
space. 

As the race ended I looked around. I could plainly see the 
uncovered streets and houses in Pompeii, and villages lying 
much closer to the mountain than Pompeii ever did ; and all 
around this volcano is a vast plain — some of the most fer- 
tile soil in the world. The level land is not as wide next 
to the sea as inland. I remembered what a German once 
told me in Spokane, Washington. He said : "I am a gradu- 
ate of an agricultural college in Germany. The richest soil 
in Europe is volcanic soil on the plains about Mount Vesu- 
vius. I came to America to find similar soil. I found it 
only in Colfax county of this state and I have settled there." 
And with pride he pointed out to me his samples of wheat, 
apples and pears, as we were talking on the Washington fair 
grounds at the time. 

The whole country except a strip behind the volcano lay 
spread out before me. What a lofty view ! I was like some 
eagle perched upon a crag. Out in the distance lay the city 
of Naples, fringing the shore of the sea, and on the an- 
chorage were ships from all climes. On the mountain side 
below me a few clouds were beginning to gather, and then to 
melt away, like some of our dreams, which when we awake 



118 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

are scattered and gone. Out in the country, and on those 
distant mountain ranges, this last day of September, the sun 
was catching village, vineyard, trees and rocky mountain slopes 
and bathing them in robes of royal brightness. 

As I traced the shore lines of this bewithchingly beautiful 
bay of Naples, and noticed that arising out of its blue depths 
there were white, fleecy looking clouds, beginning to appear, 
yet so transparent that they seemed like mere phantom spec- 
tres of imagination — I must forebear. I promised that I would 
not write about the bay of Naples, yet it is awfully hard to 
keep out of the arena where gladiatores have fought so long, 
and I would like to take one good turn of pen and thought. 
Lame, blistered, tired and sore, I crept into my bed in Naples. 

At 7 o'clock in the morning we were on a passenger train 
leaving Naples for Brindisi. We saw boats in the bay with 
fishermen and in the gardens we saw them pumping water 
with donkeys, and I saw one goat hitched to the wooden 
sweep, pulling it around to pump water for irrigation. 

Bathed in this morning's sun Mount Vesuvius arose ab- 
ruptly out of the plain and I saw a curl of smoke arising from 
the crater on its top, weaving itself into a shroud of snowy 
whiteness, looking like a robe fit for angels to wear. As we 
passed Pompeii at a little distance, its walls, houses and streets 
were deserted and silent-looking, gray and grim with age. 

After crossing the level plain, covered with gardens, we ' 
came to a hilly country near the Sorrento mountains, where I 
saw some orange trees, not looking thrifty, but good looking 
vineyards. There had been a heavy wind blowing from the 
mountains and I noticed very large fig trees, several of them, 
uprooted and thrown down, also mulberry and other trees by 
the wayside with many limbs broken off. We rode through a 
valley, and on the other side came to where clouds nearly ob- 
scured the sun. Off to the right was the Mediterranean sea, 
with sky and cloud so blended together, and all of the color 
of this placid sea, that in this gray morning light it seemed we 
were on the edge of the world, peeping off into space in search 
cf other worlds. 



FROM ROME TO SMYRNA. 119 

We reached Salermo at 9:30, and beyond saw mountains 
covered with olive trees; then an open level country several 
miles in extent, with nothing of much account growing; too 
dry and rocky, soil poor. Again we came to mountains of 
olives; then into a rough, hilly, mountainous country, with 
some small trees and many bushes ; a natural forest-growing 
region, as I saw on one hillside a grove of grand old oaks. 
We passed up a river with very little water running. Men were 
plowing with the crudest-looking plows I ever saw, and living 
in poor houses, yet most of the population seemed to live in 
towns a few miles apart. The singular part of it is, these 
towns are perched up on the top of small mountains, and so 
gray that the buildings look like one tier of rocks above an- 
other. These hills were as bare and brown as any ever were 
in California. At each station were venders of all sorts of 
fruit and bread and water which was carried in two handled 
jugs with a tumbler to draw. The small rocks are every- 
where, the subsoil being made up of pebbles or rocks, not many 
larger than one's fist. We saw improvements being made on 
the railroad tracks and women were carrying baskets of dirt 
and dumping them, grading new road, some olive trees on 
the hillsides and a few apple tress. At the small stations and 
along the country roads nearly every woman in sight wore a 
red shawl. 

We came to an open hilly country and could see for miles 
each way. A very poor country, almost too poor for anything 
to grow. Then we passed down a small river and through 
numerous tunnels, yet the whole country was not worth much. 
About 4 o'clock in the afternoon, we came out of the hills and 
mountains and commenced to cross an open plain of good 
land, yet there was nothing growing, scarcely a tree in sight. 
I saw several yoke of white oxen plowing. After a few 
miles we came to the shore and for many miles ran near the 
sea, the dirt in some places thrown up like the dunes on 
the Pacific coast. Little, yet old, pine trees grew among the 
dunes and on top of them, all bent towards the land, showing 
much wind through the year. Looking at the sea, this Octo- 



120 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

ber afternoon, with scarcely a ripple on the shore, it seemed 
in one of its mildest moods. 

Toward sundown we came to Taranto, where many of the 
passengers got off. We were looking out on the Gulf of 
Taranto towards the Ionian sea. As we passed along we 
saw a few pomegranite trees. Bands of black sheep were 
grazing on the scanty herbage ; ribs of rock land and thou- 
sands of olive trees, some of them looking centuries old. It 
grew dark. We had traveled the whole length of Italy and 
found no orange groves worthy of the name. I think the 
orange growing district is nearly all on the island of Sicily. 
The Italians have not allowed any forests to grow, south 
of Northern Italy, since the forests were cut off by their 
ancestors. The mountains, more than likely, had some soil 
on them, but the erosion of rain for centuries has largely taken 
that away. Except around Vesuvius, and now and then a 
strip of naturally good land, the land not in rocks is poor 
and needs fertilizing. I saw no fields of alfalfa, nothing 
growing worth mentioning, except olives, mulberry trees and 
grapes, except in gardens, where irrigation was the rule, 
from a surface well, and by the crudest of methods. These 
remarks apply wholly to Central and Southern Italy. Sicily 
I did not see and know nothing of. Northern Italy is well 
watered. Its mountains have forests, its people are enter- 
prising and progressive, its cities are rapidly increasing in 
manufacturing. Over one-half of the time we were in Italy 
it was cloudy weather. 

While traveling in England, on the Midland railway, I 
met an American lady who resided in Florence, only being 
in England for a season to attend the coronation. We were 
talking about Italy. I made a remark about sunny Italy. 
"Oh," she said, "those books were written by Englishmen, 
and in contrast to England it is sunny, but there is much 
cloudy weather there." You may come to Italy some OctoDer 
and find green grass; I did not, and I think they need 
to irrigate as much as in California. There is less area 
of natural damp lands, and mostly poor soil, nothing like 



PROM ROME TO SMYRNA. 121 

the north of Europe in natural fertility, except the rich 
spots noted. Many of the country homes have a patch of 
cane growing for basket-making. 

About 8 o'clock in the evening we alighted from our train 
in Brindisi, hired a cab and drove to the steamship's wharf. 
We saw the streets full of people ; boys and men sound asleep 
on the sidewalks ; country people were bringing in their vint- 
age. I saw one street full of people, where some man 
was selling patent nostrums. We found that in order to go 
on the steamer we would have to declare our intention to the 
police. We did so, and they sent word they wanted to see us 
and our passports. We went to the chief of police's office. 
He took our passports, yet he looked more sharply at us 
than at the passports. That ordeal being over, we waited 
for the steamer. About half past nine the steamer arrived 
from Trieste. We went on board and were assigned to some 
rooms in the ladies' cabin, as all others were taken. We were 
afloat on the sea once more, after traveling nearly eight thou- 
sand miles in Europe in all sorts of cars, under all conditions, 
exciting and otherwise, and through many countries. We re- 
tired, and about 12 o'clock the whistle blew, the gang planks 
were pulled off and the steamer started. 

We were sailing on the Adriatic, one of the most stormy seas 
in the world. The sea was in a pensive mood, waiting for its 
master, the storm king, to assert his sway again. Early in 
the morning I arose and went on deck. It was sunrise. About 
twenty miles away to the north were high, abrupt mountains. 
Not a tree on them ; but little soil ; almost all rocks, and rising 
abruptly from the water's edge. It was the Albania country, 
a part of Turkey. We were sailing about due east, and on the 
right were four rocks arising out of the sea, or small islands. 

Just a film of clouds arched the heavens o'er, enough to 
give a quiet look to land and sea. At 10 o'clock the ship 
came to anchor before a small town in Turkey, a port with a 
title so long and hard that I will omit its name. It was the 
port for the capital of this province, Albania. Boats filled 
with Turkish and Greek men wearing a "fez" came to the 



122 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

ship with much clamor, and considerable freight was put off. 
Two other steamers came from somewhere, with many red- 
capped passengers. 

Only a little row of two-story houses on the shore, some old 
ruins, gray with age, a few houses torn in pieces, as the 
Greeks shelled this part of the town in their late war with 
Turkey. Just back of the shore are ledges of rock, with 
scarcely room for a spear of grass to grow. All the morning 
we had been sailing by lofty, towering mountains, without a 
tree, the most rocky, desolate, bare-looking mountains in the 
world. Besides the little port, there were two old ruins up 
on high hills, one cedar tree, six smaller ones and about a 
score of bushes in sight on these rock-ribbed mountain sides 
as far as I could see in either direction. A trail leading over 
the mountain in a low place, and running along its side for 
grade, caught my attention. I saw almost a continual line 
of pack mules going each way. Over by the water's edge 
and back of the houses were hundreds more, moving around 
or standing still. They were there to pack goods into the in- 
terior. The men in flowing robes would start one or two 
animals off and then walk behind them. Coming in or going 
out, if the load was light, they would ride. 

It is a two days' journey to reach their capital. We sailed 
along over these charming seas, clad in summer breezes. We 
came to Corfu just a little after noon, on an island, its most 
northern point. On the mainland a bay of considerable size 
indented the shore, and the same desolate look on mountain 
and land. Corfu, this warm summer day, with shade trees 
and carriages in waiting to carry one about, looked inviting, 
yet we did not land, as the steamer doe^ not come to a pier 
at any of these ports. 

Our course now lay a little to the southeast through a strait 
about twenty-five miles wide. On the oth^r side of the island 
beyond Corfu I saw a few trees. All day we met and passed 
several sail boats — on one I counted sixteen sails set. Until 
night the mainland in Turkey still continued to present the 
most rocky and desolate appearance I ever saw. At half 



FROM ROME TO SMYRNA. 123 

past seven in the evening I walked on the upper deck. The 
clouds were gone, the wind blew from the east, a nice, soft, 
refreshing breeze after the heat of the day. The evening star 
shone with wonderful brilliancy, other stars were twinkling 
merrily in the heavens, and the Milky Way in one grand, 
reaching sweep of brilliant beauty, circled the heavens from 
southeast to northeast. I located the north star and the dip- 
pers and gazed with fondness on star after star, the very 
same ones that I have so often loved to watch from my Cali- 
fornia home. Turning my eyes toward the sea I looked. In 
the southeast, just above the horizon, commencing with the 
Milky Way, only of its width and tapering out toward i.ne 
zenith was a band of brilliant light, brightest at its commence- 
ment. Out upon the rippling sea the reflection of this to 
me unlooked for and surprising light, shone with more splen- 
dor than if all the diamonds in the South African mines were 
scattered over that strip of sea. I was spellbound. The most 
brilliant part of it was just over the horizon, where sea and 
sky flashed almost together, eclipsing in effect all the incan- 
descent lights that Edison ever made; for many minutes I 
looked in quiet rapture. I do not remember of ever reading 
of anything similar. I returned to the cabin. Just one hour 
later I again walked on the upper deck. The stars shone as 
bright, the cool, refreshing breeze was there, catching my 
throbbing brow and resting on my upturned cheeks as before. 
The Milky Way was there. The brilliant light, with all of its 
flashing reflections, centering in one grand diadem of light, 
just above the horizon, was gone. Between me and the Milky 
Way the sea rolled along in rippling waves, as shown by 
lights on the ship, but beyond all was darkness and gloom, 
as it was one hour before at every point of the compass. I 
cannot explain. It certainly was no reflection from the sun- 
set. In calculation those bright scintilations of light, all 
pointing towards the horizon, would just about point towards 
the city of Jerusalem, our present destination. Was it a 
beacon light, something like the shepherds saw (Luke 2:8) 
"keeping watch over their flocks by night" nearly two thou- 



124 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

sand years ago? Or was it a token of blessing to me and 
approval of my intended travels in the Holy Land? Or 
was it that wonderful city "New Jerusalem" (Rev. 21:2), 
with its gates of pearls, its streets paved with pure gold, 
stretching out in size fifteen hundred miles wide, long and 
deep, "and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even 
like jasper, clear as crystal" (Rev. 21:11), and destined, after 
this old world is resurrected from its ashes, to be moved down 
from the heavens above, where you and I can "walk in the 
light of it" (Rev. 21 124) ? Did heaven open its portals long 
enough, letting the angels swing wide open the twelve gates 
of pearl, throwing through the interminable realms of space 
something of this light, catching the Milky Way in its course, 
until by reflection I caught a glimpse of "the holy city" (Rev. 
21 :2) ? 

I am writing this not far from the Isle of Patmos, but sit- 
ting on another steamer, looking at the mountains of Asia in 
the distance. I am still wondering, as I am looking into the 
calm, blue depths of this historic sea, what the meaning of 
this vision to me. Was it the beating pulse of loving na- 
ture's flow? Was it another throb of some volcano's glow? 
I cannot explain the vision or its sight, unless it was a glimpse 
of heavenly light. 

The next morning our steamer sailed into the port of 
Patros, in Greece, just before sunrise. I was on deck at early . 
dawn. At the left of the harbor are two beautiful mountain*,. 
Just as the sun rose, our luggage was in a boat, and accom- 
panying it were these two Californians. Very soon we were 
lined up with the luggage in the custom house for inspec- 
tion. As usual, there was much talking and tumbling over of 
luggage. I saw the inspector tell one woman, as I judged by 
their motions, to hide a piece of fine dress goods under her 
cloak. This ordeal over, we had our luggage taken to a hotel, 
and we started to walk. What curious shops, queer customs, 
dirt, heat, sunshine and flies. We came to a Greek church, 
entered and saw two priests chanting some sort of a service. 
There was only one worshipper present, and one more going 



FROM ROME TO SMYRNA. 125 

in as we came out. The large chandelier was covered with a 
red cloth, looking like a red balloon ready to sail away. 
Better muzzle the flies. We purchased three pounds of grapes 
for sixty leptas. We returned to the hotel. The train for 
Athens was ready. 

We entered and away we went, looking, every sense on the 
alert, to see and catch something of historical Greece. In our 
compartment, by my side, sits a Greek priest; just opposite 
a Greek soldier and other Greek men, women and children, 
sitting all around, as the train is full. The conductor does not 
come into the train at all during the day. While the train is 
running he climbs along on one wooden step, about one foot 
wide, attached to the outside of the car, and, as the windows 
are all let down, looks in the window of the door and gathers 
the tickets. 

It seemed singular that the first tree I saw in Greece was 
an eucalyptus tree of Australian origin. At first we passed 
through vineyards, pruned and without stakes, looking ex- 
actly like our California vineyards, except that the rows were 
a little closer together and no roads through them, as the 
people carry the fruit on their heads. There were some olive 
trees in the vineyards. I saw men treading out wine from 
grapes with their feet. At times we were some little distance 
from the sea, again just by the shores, looking down into its 
blue waters, where every rock on the bottom resembled chunks 
of blue vitrol. Every little while we would cross a river 
bed, now dry and full of gravel, coursing its way to the sea. 
Some of the mountain sides to the right were too steep to cul- 
tivate and had some brush looking like oak. Over in the 
interior were some mountains, yet they were bare and deso- 
late. We saw some very fine tall cypress trees." They are 
extremely handsome, of a very dark colored green. At a 
small station I saw one each of umbrella trees and weeping 
willow. By the side of the road were some wild flowers, 
thistles and blackberry bushes. The country was dry and 
there was plenty of dust flying off the country roads. 

We came to quite a large place. Hundreds of boys and girls 



126 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

were sorting currants, arid men were nailing up the empty 
boxes, out of doors, while a ship was waiting in the gulf or 
strait to carry them away. They are the Zante currants of 
commerce. We passed magnificent groves of olive trees, with 
the limbs bending to the ground with olives. We saw them 
irrigating on the basin plan. The pomegranates were very 
fine, and no better grapes anywhere. The olive trees look 
more thrifty than in Italy and average larger. We saw thou- 
sands of them. 

We found by consulting our railroad schedule that we 
would arrive in Corinth at i o'clock in the afternoon, 75 miles 
from Athens; and we could resume our journey at 4 o'clock 
by catching another train. We did so, hiring a carriage 
to take us from New Corinth, to the Corinth of 
Paul's time. As we drove away from the station, 
through a poor looking town, I saw many of the poorer 
houses built of adobe, and many walls constructed of gray 
bricks of adobe. We passed out of this village and for about 
half a mile by the edge of the water. We halted the carriage 
and walked by this lovely sea, dipping our hands in the 
water. Directly inland is a round mountain about two miles 
from the seashore, several hundred feet high, the upper part 
having precipitous sides. It is a natural fortification, and by 
name is called Aero- Cor inthus, meaning the citadel of Corinth. - 
We drove directly towards this mountain from the sea. About 
half way we ascended a sloping rise in the land of perhaps 
thirty feet, and at the base of this mountain extending out to 
this slope and very hard to tell how far each way the rich, 
prosperous and, in Paul's time, important city of Corinth stood. 
The location of the city was a natural one at the head of this 
gulf of water connecting with the Adriatic sea. 

The view was grand, this beautiful sea in front, tall moun- 
tains on the other side, and off to the left a valley widening 
out, and vineyards, with the stubble still standing of wheat 
fields. No wonder Paul lived here eighteen months, making 
tents out of goat skins and teaching the people. I believe that 
tall mountains, mighty valleys and a love of nature and na- 



FROM ROME TO SMYRNA.. 127 

ture's ways are staircases, not to walk over altogether, but 
to extract from, something of their honey, then mixing it, with 
a personal acquaintance with Jesus Christ, you have the true 
elixer of life that philosophers have hunted for in all ages. 
Then you have a stairway taller than the tower of Babel, 
one that will reach up to, and beyond the stars. Paul climbed 
this stairway. I was looking at the same sea, the same moun- 
tains and valleys, at similar flowers blooming around me, and 
at similar clouds that were weaving their fleecy folds around 
the rock-capped mountain above ; and as I looked out on this 
sea (the gulf of Lepanto) gleaming in this afternoon's sun, I 
too climbed another span of this stairway. 

Another point of vantage gained ; 
Another height of glory reached ; 
Another touch of nature's love; 
Molding me for heaven above. 

It pays to sit at nature's feet and learn of nature's ways. 
I have gathered from the storehouse of nature in this little 
trip so far such bounteous sweets that I am wondering if na- 
ture's storehouse has any more for me; I am sure it has. 

As I write these lines, October 15, I am sitting on a steamer 
in Beirout, Syria, looking at the mountains of Lebanon, 
where the cedars grew, catching loving nature's flow of sweet- 
ness as never before, still traveling toward the Promised 
Land. 

All around me were ruins, marble columns, pillars, beauti- 
ful work in sculpture, great arches still standing, the thea- 
ter that once resounded with shouts and music, aqueducts 
for water, a few peasants' homes, some of them built of 
broken ruins, and in the midst of them the largest cotton- 
wood tree I ever saw. Foundations, size of buildings easily 
traced, old pavements over which the tread of those Corin- 
thian people are lost in the echoes of the past, proclaimed the 
greatness of Corinth. In and among the ruins a few tittle 
garden stuffs being watered by hand were trying to grow. 



128 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

Some women were washing on marble slabs lying on the 
ground; these may have been in the synagogue that Paul 
"reasoned in— every Sabbath" (Acts 18:4). Read the 18th 
chapter and see how the Lord appeared to Paul one night in 
a vision, and also after the stay of eighteen months, he 
"tarried yet a good while." Think of the two grand letters 
he wrote to them in keeping with their location and inspiring 
scenery. Look at the first verse of the second letter and 
see who else is included, and remember that Paul was so 
interested in these people that he wrote a third letter to 
them, which was lost and not yet found. As we drove away I 
lingered to look at mountain, cloud, land, sea and sky, and 
I began to see where Paul obtained, coupled with Divine in- 
spiration, words full of counsel, pathos and tenderness. We 
rode back to the station, paid our driver the agreed price, 
twelve drachmas, ordered a cup of tea each at a restaurant, 
sipped it with delight, and boarded our train as it rolled into 
the station with our faces set towards Athens, whose very 
name means, "Minerva, the Goddess of Literature." 

While waiting for the train to start, I cast my eyes up and 
down the well-crowded station front to see how these Corin- 
thian people looked — baggy trousers, white shirts worn by 
men, shoes tipped up in front, wads of black hair on, the top 
of the tips as large and round as the brush on the back of a- 
blacking brush, red caps, costumes of all colors and stripes ; 
some dressed like us, all talking like the roar of a whirlpool, 
in a language unknown to us, and you have some idea of the 
kind of people Corinthians are today. The train ran along, 
we crossed the ship canal — a deep straight-cut in the rocks 
from sea to sea, looking to be two or three miles long. 
At a small station we saw a lot of goat skins full of wine 
for shipment. We passed some scrubby pine trees, then 
mountains all rocks, and a town among them. Over the rol- 
ling slope between the sea and the mountains were thousands 
of olive trees — not a spear of green grass in sight — all the 
mountain tops bare and desolate and the olive trees were dry 



FROM ROME TO SMYRNA. 129 

and poor. No forest trees — rocks and desolation. Darkness 
settled about us, a relief to tired eyes and brain. 

On our arrival in Athens, a city founded soon after the 
flood, we hired a cab, drove to the Hotel Patros and were 
soon snugly ensconced in our room. 

In the morning in Athens, while we were talking with the 
hotel proprietor, I showed him my passport. He looked at it 
and shook his head. He could read the language. The ras- 
cally consul general of Turkey in Rome had played a trick on 
us and put the 'visa" on for Alexander, in Egypt. We must 
get another "visa" or we could never land in Asia, where Tur- 
key ruled. Our steamer would sail at one o'clock in the 
afternoon from the harbor of Piraeus, five miles from Athens. 
We decided to hire a carriage and a guide, one that could talk 
English, as we must get to Piraeus just before noon to get 
our passports fixed. We completed our arrangements and 
started out to see Athens. 

The first thing we noticed was a row of Mexican pepper 
trees. We drove towards the Acropolis, first walking in 
and among the ruins of one of the seven wonders of the 
ancient world. We were looking at the temple of Jupiter 
Olympus. A few of the fluted columns of marble are still 
standing, of the original one hundred and twenty, fifty-seven 
feet high, looking as large as the ordinary tower of a country 
church, chiseled out of the finest of Pentelican marble, with 
flutes running around the columns in a partial cylindrical 
style. We walked around the second largest temple for 
heathen worship, the one of Diana at Ephesus being the 
largest. Even in its ruins, we looked on in wonder and 
amazement. It stretched out from the base of the Acropolis 
to the banks of the celebrated river Ilissus of the classics. 

As we drove up towards the top of the Acropolis, so named 
because it was an immense rock rising abruptly out of the 
plain, of considerable size on top, I was surprised to see not 
one but many score of century plants, only I noticed none 
that had recently thrown that wonderful shaft upwards into 
the sky of stalk and bloom. In the days of Athens' splendor 



130 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

and triumph the Acropolis was covered with temples. We 
walked around on their ruins, gazing at their stupendous 
magnificence, as their size, the cunning work of the sculp- 
tor's hand on marble in figure, column, base and cap, with 
cornice to match, the curve or circle of foundations, still un- 
moved, and their number, as every Grecian god had a 
temple, filled us with speechless awe. The largest and best 
preserved is the temple of Minerva, the patron deity of Ath- 
ens, as its name indicates. 

We were admitted to the prison hewn out of a rock, and 
stood on the place where Socrates was imprisoned, and we 
thought of that hour when they made him take the poison 
in the very place where we stood, when this sublime philoso- 
pher, living hundreds of years B. C, with only the light and 
touch of nature to guide him, said: "Weep not for Socrates; 
he will not be here; he is going to dwell with the God for 
whose testimony he lays down his life." We walked up on 
Mars Hill, not far from the Acropolis, and stood where Paul 
preached to the assembled multitude, and if you will insert 
in the first verse of that sermon, as recorded in the seven- 
teenth chapter of Acts, in place of the words "too supersti- 
tious," the words "very religious," the real meaning, then 
you will catch a glimpse (as we saw the full force, with 
temples of worship all around) of Paul's thoughts and argu- 
ment. 

We climbed into the great amphitheatre hewn out of the 
rock, on the Hill of the Pnyx, and stood where Demosthenes, 
the greatest of orators, held the people spellbound, as his 
burning words of eloquence touched their hearts and lives. 
We saw glistening in the distance the new marble seats re- 
cently placed in the Olympic Stadium, where the ancient races 
were run. We saw the temple of Thesus on a little rise of 
land below the Acropolis, almost in a state of preservation, 
yet three thousand years old. We saw thirty-six marble col- 
umns supporting its porticos. We went into the museum and 
saw statues of Greece's mighty men, gold trinkets and masks 
for their faces, and shrouds made of gold, which the kings 



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FROM ROME TO SMYRNA. 131 

and queens of Greece had buried with them thousands of 
years ago. We saw their lamps, water jars and many other 
things, mementoes of the past 

Casting only a look at the Hills of the Muses and Nymphs, 
we drove towards the harbor of Piraeus. At the north are 
the mountains of Parnassus, and it is said on the top of 
its highest mountain sparkles a spring of water called the 
"Pierian Fountain," and to every one that climbs the moun- 
tain and drinks of this fountain that there is imparted to 
them the true genius of philosophy and poetry. You may 
laugh and call it a whim, yet I really wanted to climb this 
mountain. On the south is Mt. Hymettus, celebrated for 
its fine honey. Athens has one fine street, considerable 
business, many novel sights, as here European ways are 
being cast aside, or rather never learned, and Oriental cos- 
tumes and customs were attracting our attention. We 
met carts loaded with goat skins filled with wine, with feet 
of the once live goat sticking up or out one side in the air. 
We met coming from the harbor loads of blankets from 
France, and coal from England. Either side of the road 
as we drove to Piraeus was dry and bare, except where 
some pumping of water was being done in a crude way, 
enough to irrigate some small gardens. The mountains 
were bare, not a tree, scarcely a bush. Were these the fa- 
mous plains of Attica, once so fertile that poets caught the 
blush of its beauty and wove into lines of rythme, such a 
a charm of thought and expression? We arrived in Piraeus, 
hunted up the Turkish consul and obtained his "visa." As 
he handed them to us we discovered that only Smyrna was 
included. We also asked for Jaffa, which he reluctantly 
added. We had the privilege of paying ten francs. 

As we sailed out of the harbor we were in the bay of 
Salamis, where one of the most memorable naval battles in 
the world was fought. You know the history of how this 
mighty Persian king, on yonder round-topped mountain on 
the north, overlooking this beautiful bay, had his golden 



132 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

throne set up, and, sitting in it, ordered his fleet of ships 
to destroy the little Grecian fleet. To his surprise, the 
Greeks burned his ships and obtained a sweeping victory. 
Not many miles distant, afterwards his mighty army was 
defeated by the Greeks. We watched the islands and the 
mountains of Greece as long as we could see, as we sailed 
over this calm ^Egean sea, fanned by summer breezes, I 
mused about many things. Always in Europe on the rail- 
way trains the first thing I looked for in the morning were 
the wild flowers, and the last I looked for in the evening. 
They were always there to welcome me. Up near Moscow 
they were nearly chilled out of existence, yet they were 
there, making me look close and seeing only the tiniest 
ones, almost strangled with cold. The most surprising part 
was that up in Scotland the red poppies were very plentiful, 
peeping above the uncut grain. Scattered through England, 
and sometimes lost for days on the continent, yet at times 
hundreds of miles apart, this scarlet poppy would come 
in view, if not more than one. 

In the morning I walked on deck to see the surroundings. 
We were sailing over seas so placid that they might be 
called "seas of marble." At the island of Chios we came 
to anchor before a town of several thousand inhabitants, 
prettily situated, and with an apparent Sabbath still- 
ness on shore. After discharging some freight and taking 
in some passengers, we again sailed. It was a beautiful 
day, clear, with just a little cool breeze blowing from the 
north, which seemed to be tempered by the frosts of Russia 
as it came pushing its way through the Dardanelles. There 
were a good many passengers on board. I walked on deck 
to watch the mountains of Asia. As we came nearer they 
were much different from those in Greece — not so rocky, 
and trees and bushes, or fields under cultivation covered 
their slopes. 

As we sailed into our place of anchorage in Smyrna, I 
was surprised to see such a large city circling the end of 
the gulf — the largest in Asia Minor, about 300,000 popula- 



FROM ROME TO SMYRNA. 133 

tion. The steamer cast its anchor and a small boat came 
from the shore flying the yellow flag of quarantine, and 
reported that a case of black plague had occurred, and 
Smyrna might be quarantined. We would either have to 
go ashore or sail up to Constantinople. All the passengers 
decided to go ashore. A large barge was moored alongside 
the ship, and while it looked like a trap, we went on the 
barge. No one was allowed to touch the ship, and Elmer, 
after he got off, as the barge rolled a little, put out his hand 
to touch the ship, and those watching shouted to him at 
the top of their voices, as the ship wanted to avoid all 
communication with the land, or with anybody after they 
left. What a shouting and noise, and we were taken di- 
rectly to the custom house, where our luggage was in- 
spected and passports demanded. I never was in such 
confusion before. Luckily for us, they overlooked the Eng- 
lish hold-all. We went to a hotel and concluded that it 
was the queerest afternoon we ever spent— and on Sunday. 

Towards evening we took a walk. The narrowest of 
streets, stores all wide open and selling goods of all kinds, 
and the queerest of people. We nearly got lost with the 
top of a sloping hill and the sea as sides of the city. It took 
one hour of hard walking to find our way to the sea front 
where our hotel was, and we were not ten minutes' walk- 
away. No sort of church services did we see, and thousands 
sitting out of doors in the European cafe style. In the 
morning we visited the American Consul. He did not give 
us much comfort as he said "a rigid quarantine was liable to 
be established." We could only hope to get out of Smyrna 
without going through quarantine. We saw near the Con- 
sul's office two caravans of camels loaded with licorice root 
from the mountains. 

The Consul told us that we could depend on no one. He 
said: "All will lie for five cents." He informed me that the 
exports were figs, wool, cotton, licorice, grain and wine. He 
told me that books were generally taken by the Turkish offi- 



134 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

cials, if they contained anything on the country. I told him 
what books we had. He said, "they will get them." 

We went to the Imperial and Ottoman bank to draw some 
money. It was half-past two in the afternoon. Do not think 
it was easily found, for we had to have a guide to lead us 
there through such streets as you never dreamed of, narrow, 
and crooked. The bank was not open until 3 o'clock. All 
the offices and banks open from nine to twelve in the morn- 
ing, then close and open from three to six -in the afternoon. 

I presented our request as these large banks always have 
some one to speak English, and was asked what kind of 
money I wanted, I said "Napoleons," as French gold is 
called. 

While waiting I was astonished to see such large deposits 
and withdrawals — bags of gold, and not counted — all 
weighed; and as they were emptied they used shovels to put 
the gold on the scales. The noise sounded like shoveling 
loose corn and beans, only there was a metallic clink. I 
secured what I asked for and as we passed down into the 
street I saw a carriage at the door, and three large sacks of 
gold lifted out. A donkey had three sacks more, with porters 
behind, and top of a man's back a little further along, were 
three sacks more of gold, with guards about, all going into 
the bank. 

Can I picture this wonderful street scene? Women veiled, 
nearly all the men dressed in red caps, most of them flowing 
robes ; some women not veiled ; caravans of camels ; all in 
streets so narrow as you meet them you have to crowd to 
one side while they pass; donkeys with loads on their backs 
larger than they; Arabs with flowing capes on. 

We met men selling water with skins full of it on their 
backs; selling lemonade out of large bottles, and traveling 
stores on men's backs, selling all sorts of goods. The roughest 
of cobblestones are used for pavement in the narrow streets, 
some of them covered in a ramshackle way, letting but little 
light in — no sidewalks, everybody and all the animals in the 
street; dogs fast asleep under your feet or howling at night; 



FROM ROME TO SMYRNA. 135 

dirt, flies and smells too numerous to mention; and the streets 
beginning and ending, just as it seemed to happen. 

On the water front is the only wide street, with horse 
cars running, the horses hitched to the cars ten feet away with 
ropes for tugs ; money changers sitting on the streets, rattling 
the coin in their hands. As we sat in the hotel I heard some- 
body playing on a piano in an adjoining building a piece of 
Faust's opera music and as we sat at the dining table a dress- 
maker was making up dresses for the hotel proprietor's girls, 
consulting Butterick's fashion plates, and using a Singer hand 
machine. We visited the American college, called undenomi- 
national, yet really under control and support of the Con- 
gregationalists. They get now and then Turkish girls in the 
school, then comes a sweeping order from the Ottoman gov- 
ernment forbidding any attendance at Christian schools, and 
they are taken away. In the country Turkish girls are not 
educated and all Turks believe that women have no souls. 

We purchased very fine grapes to eat, making us think of 
the game played and words used many years ago in New 
York State. "The Malaga grapes are very good grapes but 
the grapes of Smyrna are better." In the evenings thou- 
sands of men and unveiled women would gather along the 
street on the seafront and sit by tables, sipping drinks, smok- 
ing, talking, the ladies all dressed up in the most approved 
Continental European style. The proportion of Mohamme- 
dans to Christians in the population is small, so marked that 
the Turks speak of Smyrna as "the infidel city." Alas ! Here 
in this Oriental land, everything not Mohammedan is shaken 
up all together and called "Christian." 



V. 

tphesus, S)amaseus and Palestine 



One morning we arose before sunrise and as the sun was 
looking at us from over the hills and mountains of Asia, we 
were briskly walking along the sea front, distance about one 
and one-half miles to catch the railroad train for Ephesus, 
only one running each way a day; distance about fifty 
miles. We were just in time, secured our tickets for sixty 
piastres, and were rolling away on the train at half-past six. 
At a small station, the first stop on the edge of the city, 
many more passengers — all men — crowded into the train, with 
all sorts of luggage — dark featured, many in flowing robes 
of all colors and stripes ; and as the train again started, they 
ate pomegranates, chunks of bread and grapes with such 
avidity as to indicate their usual breakfast At first we saw 
some orange trees, not many, but looking well. We began 
climbing a rocky ravine, with some vineyards on the hill- 
sides; then we came to a plateau of fine looking land. The 
day was warm. A few clouds were scattered between us 
and the sun in that peculiar manner, when people exclaim, 
"The sun is drawing water." The valley widened until almost 
as far as we could see were stretches of one of nature's most 
lovely valleys, fertile and as level as any farmer could desire. 
Fields of cotton and Egyptian corn were scattered along, 
with groups of people gathering cotton. Beyond and 
around these fields were areas of stubble and uncultivated 
land, as dry and brown as any October view in California. 
Yonder not far away, swaying like ships on a rolling sea, 






EPHESUS, DAMASCUS AND PALESTINE. 137 

was a caravan of camels wending their way along. We saw 
three more caravans before reaching Ephesus. 

Little stations were scattered along, and our train halted 

at everyone; and if anyone wanted to alight he had to rap 
on the door as we were all locked in and there was no way 
of walking along the train. The guard at each station raps 
loudly on the outside of the doors announcing the station. 
At all the larger stations women, boys and sometimes men, 
ran along the train on the outside, selling water from jugs at 
about a penny a glass. If you wanted any you reached from 
the windows, all opened by shoving them downwards. At 
every station men flocked to the windows, sometimes two 
heads out of one window, until from the outside our train 
looked like a row of red night caps, as nearly all wore the 
red fez. 

The most peculiar feature of the engine was a cow catcher 
attached; nowhere seen in Europe. About half way to Eph- 
esus there is a branch road running to the north, and as far 
as we could see, the country in valley, slope, hill and mount- 
ain, is as handsome and fertile as any in the world. We 
passed a damp place and saw a large company of Arabs, with 
their tents and ponys camped there. Most of these valleys 
have water near the surface and if I am any judge, artesian 
water could be made to flow in streams as refreshing as 
the one that flowed from the rock in response to the touch of 
Moses's rod. A few miles before we reached Ephesus, we 
came into a region of the finest fig orchards I ever saw, in 
large orchards, each side of the road. Such monstrous trees 
and so dark and thrifty in appearance. 

Our train came to a station marked Avassoulook. We con- 
cluded the name stood for Ephesus, as it was time to arrive, 
and showing our tickets were motioned to get off. We had 
five hours and we started to walk to old Ephesus over two 
miles away. In the new town we saw lots of ruins, columns 
standing, and arches, yet having seen so many old ruins 
we were getting to be judges and concluded that these ruins 
were not old enough and placed them in the middle ages. 



138 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

We trudged along, meeting camels and two droves of cattle. 
It was very warm, clouds all cleared away and the sun beat- 
ing down on field and road with the power of Southern 
climes. I took coat, vest and collar off, and seeing some old 
ruins in the distance on the edge of a hill, we concluded it 
was Ephesus and struck across a cotton field, and then a 
pasture, to reach them. As we climbed the low hill, we 
saw many more ruins in the distance and leading to the hill. 
About one and one-half miles away we saw the sea. We 
walked along. We had expected to only see some small 
ruins; they were quite extensive ones. In the fields, on the 
road, and by the wayside lay piles of broken columns, cor« 
nices, bits of mosaic pavement, pieces of capitals with acanthus 
leaves on them and lizards as they saw or heard us, running 
for cover. An Austrian society was excavating, and we came 
to where they were at work, uncovering water pipes of burned 
clay resembling bricks. We walked down a wide street once 
leading to the sea, now all excavated, and what a thrill of 
surprise and wonder caught us. We walked on mosaic pave- 
ments, by the side of the bases of pillars once standing or 
over stone pavements that Paul and the people of the church 
of Ephesus once walked on. How long the street was and 
wider than any we have seen in other ancient cities. What a 
wealth of alcoves, of arches, and of wrecked marble pillars; 
and as we walked around, on the side is the great fountain 
where wreathed bulls and lions, with broken human figures, 
all of marble, were lying so thick on the pavements that we 
could step from piece to piece with ease. The gymnasium, 
market place, and the custom house were not far from here 
and by their ruins of arch, pillar and cap still standing must 
have been of magnitude and beauty. 

At the east end of this wide, noble street stood the theatre 
where there is such an uproar described in Acts, 19th chapter. 
It was here where thousands of Ephesians cried with a loud 
voice for two hours : "Great is Diana of the Ephesians." 
Acts 19-34. This theatre with the stairways and courts and 
shrines at the entrances, hollowed out of a hill with many of 








CAMEL CARAVAN LOADED WITH COTTON. 
EPHESUS. 



EPHESUS, DAMASCUS AND PALESTINE. 139 

the pillars still standing in the arena, would seat 60,000 people. 
We picked blackberries and ate them, ripe, sweet and delic- 
ious, growing in this theatre and in the streets approaching 
it. History tells us that at this time Ephesus was the most 
wealthy city of Western Asia, its metropolis, and here was 
this great "Temple of Diana" two hundred years in building; 
one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. We saw its 
location, the most complete in its ruins, not a pillar or arch 
standing; tragic, yet pathetic in its fall. An ancient gateway 
in a narrow street still standing near the main entrance to 
the theatre, just the same as in Paul's time, with ruts worn 
deep into the hard stone pavements, made by passing wheels. 
We walked over a mile by ruined temples toward New 
Ephesus, and came to a large rock under a wall of some 
great building perched on a low hill. This wall was fully 
five hundred feet long and in some places forty feet high. 
With great arches under it twenty feet high running under 
into its depths in some places as far as the light would pene- 
trate. Some immense building was there, as we were only 
looking at the ruins and the foundation walls still standing. I 
sat on a rock under the shade of this great wall, like a 
mountain. I looked towards the sea, just a level plain and 
in front five or six miles away was a low range of mount- 
ains running to the sea, parallel with the valley. I saw two 
caravans of camels out in the valley going towards the sea. 
Near me stood a very large fig tree. As we came up a large 
eagle flew away from the ruins, and we saw two buzzards 
flying along. I laid on the rock and shut my eyes. The 
breeze from the sea came in a gentle cooling way, and over 
behind the ruins we heard a flock of sandhill cranes, utter- 
ing their peculiar cry, so familiar to us in California, as they 
flew by. Perhaps Paul sat on this very rock, as he wrote that 
inspiring first letter to the Corinthians, here in Ephesus 
in the spring of A. D. 57, staying here until after Pentecost, 
early in June. Where it says in the Bible this letter was 
written from Philippi is an error and not in the original. 
Some other hand added that at a later date. His letter to 



140 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

the Ephesians, the most heavenly of all his letters, was writ- 
ten in Rome about A. D. 61, four years later in Paul's "hired 
house." Here in Ephesus the Apostle John was living in 
A. D. 121, when he disappeared and no record of his death is 
given. Many Christians believe he was translated. 

How real it made Paul's letters to me to look at the same 
mountains, sea and valley, walk around on the same pave- 
ments, and look and lie on the same rocks ; and in every 
way touch nature in the same way and at the same place. 
Beautiful Ephesus once located by this gentle sea, on the most 
fertile of soils, in a genial clime, and lovely mountains near 
with outlines as fair as nature ever made. 

We walked back to the station, and at one place on the 
road there were Egyptian corn fields each side. The stalks 
would average eight feet high and the corn was gathered, 
leaving the stalks partly dry. I will never forget the whirr 
and rustle of those corn leaves as the steady sea breeze caught 
them in a twirl and whirl, almost rivaling a group of Aeolian 
harps. The wild flowers were beautiful and in and among 
the ruins I picked some. 

As we came to the station two men were selling grapes in 
the street. We purchased one piastre's worth. They would 
measure fully one inch in diameter each way — the largest I 
saw. In weighing them an old battered iron balance was used • 
and only rocks for weights. While drinking some tea served 
to us in tumblers, in front of the station, I looked at the sur- 
roundings. Camels not far away, lying down, their 
loads still on their backs ; men sitting all around, some 
playing cards, others sipping tea or wine and yet others smok- 
ing; not far away a lady making some pink dresses for a 
girl, dogs sound asleep near our feet, donkeys hitched, the 
people dressed in Oriental costumes and talking vociferously. 

We boarded the train, again full of curious people, and as 
we halted a few minutes in the edge of Smyrna at sunset, 
I looked over in a vacant field and saw fully one hundred 
camels lying down in rows, eating their suppers of chopped 
hay or straw. The next day, just before sunset, with some 



EPHESUS, DAMASCUS AND PALESTINE. 141 

books tied under our arms before being attired in our coats 
and vests, our luggage passed inspection by the Turkish 
officials, and we boarded the Urano, an Austrian steamer, and 
sailed away. 

In the morning, just after sunrise of October 9, I walked 
on deck. At the right were beautiful little islands and on 
the left as we were sailing south were mountains in Asia. 
The seas were as beautiful as ever, with soft summer breezes 
playing all about us. While writing in our room at 10 o'clock 
in the morning, Elmer came and said, "we are passing the 
island of Patmos." I scrambled on deck and there to the 
left, not over two miles away, lay this not large island, with 
not a house in sight, just an undulating surface of hill and 
dale, treeless, yet altogether one of the most historic islands 
in the world. Here John one Lord's day heard "a great 
voice as of a trumpet,' and saw the Lord and wrote the mes- 
sage to the seven churches; and then again "I looked and 
behold a door was opened in heaven," Rev. 4-1, and this 
great voice said to him "come up hither and I will show 
thee things that must be hereafter." Wonderful reading, this 
Book of Revelation, and if anyone seeks and takes the gift 
of knowledge, one of the nine gifts mentioned in 1 Cor. 12, 
they will understand Revelations and get the blessing de- 
scribed in its first chapter and third verse. How true in the 
first church of the seven, the candlestick was taken away as 
we had just seen at Ephesus. We sailed by islands on the 
right all day and were much interested in the contour of the 
mountains of Asia. Mountains, next to clouds, are one of 
nature's ways of touching me as nothing else. 

About 5 o'clock we sailed into the harbor of Rhodes, situ- 
ated on an island of the same name. As we entered the har- 
bor, I wondered how large the great brazen statue was, and 
I saw the two points of land nearly a mile wide, where this 
statue straddled the harbor, and ships sailed between the legs. 
It was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. Or- 
anges, lemons, sugar cane and grapes were brought on board 
for sale. Several windmills were being turned by the wind 



142 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

near the shore. The town looked beautiful at a distance, as 
all Turkish towns do. We sailed away. Our course now lay 
to the east, and as we left Rhodes, its minarets, towers, town 
and old fortifications were burnished in the rays of the set- 
ting sun, with a bright golden glow. The next morning I 
arose early and we were still sailing east, with the main land 
of Asia in sight We made no port during the day and en- 
countered the strongest wind, with the largest waves yet 
seen. Toward evening we came in sight of the Taurus 
mountains in Asia, celebrated in poetry and song. The sun- 
set glow of this October sun caught these mountain peaks, 
circling them in colors of pink and violet, while all about us 
the sea wore its proud colors of amber and gold. 

At sunrise October n, I was on deck and saw we were 
approaching Meresina, the nearest seaport to Tarsus, the city 
of Paul's nativity. Tarsus is a city of about thirty thousand 
at present and lies east of Meresina about 35 miles. Another 
city called Adana, of fifty thousand, is farther inland. The 
ship laid in this port all day, discharging and receiving freight. 
The country is very fertile, handsome to look at and exports 
much cotton. There is a Protestant college at Tarsus, called 
St. Paul's Institute. With our glasses we could see the ruins 
of the temple of Soli, not far away from Meresina. History 
tells us it was destroyed by Tigranes, King of Armenia. 

It was a beautiful summer day. The next morning we 
approached the seaport of Aleppo, an old city in the in- 
terior. A Turkish officer who sat at the dining table opposite 
me each day, wearing his red fez at the table, got off, with 
a small boat load of luggage and attendants, going to Bag- 
dad, twenty days journey by horses. The name made me 
think of stories in the Arabian Knights. About 10 o'clock 
we sailed away to the south, over the usual soft summer seas. 
Toward sundown we reached the port of Latakia, admiring 
the mountains and valleys of Asia. The afterglow of sunset, 
as it caught the sea, town, mountain and valley was particu- 
\arly handsome. 

Our ship after leaving this port sailed almost on a west- 




ISLE OF PATMOS. 



EPHESUS, DAMASCUS AND PALESTINE. 143 

erly course for the island of Cyprus. Again I walked on 
deck just before sunrise and saw the east end of the island 
just coming into sight. The island of Cyprus is under British 
rule. England pays the Turkish government 92,000 pounds 
rent each year. This arrangement commenced 22 years ago. 
The population of the entire island is about 200,000. The tax 
is one-tenth of all gross income, or crops raised. There is 
some surplus out of this tax after paying the Turkish gov- 
ernment, which goes into improvements. At every Turkish 
port as we cast anchor, about a dozen or more boats would 
come up and the men would jump over each other up the 
stairs, beside the ship, to get passengers to take ashore, hollo- 
ing at the top of their voices. The noise and clamor and 
their Oriental costumes were very interesting. Under British 
rule these same kind of people, come on orderly and well- 
behaved. 

Soon after sunrise we came to the port of Larnaka. The 
ship stayed here three hours, this port being nearer the capitol 
of the island, situated in the interior. Like California, all 
through this country it only rains in the winter and on Cyprus 
it forgot to rain much this last season, the dryest year since 
1879. One farmer sowed 1000 kilos of wheat and harvested 
i]/2 only, sowed 1000 kilos of barley and harvested 450, sowed 
800 kilos of vetches and harvested none. A kilo is about 
fifty pounds. 

For miles and miles not a house to be seen from the ship. 

The mountains were not high and there are extensive areas 

of fine level farming land, only it forgets to rain sometimes 

in the season for rain. Toward sunset we arrived at the 

port of Limasol, on Cyprus. 

Not far away an English ship was loading with carobs. 
They grow on trees and are taken to France and England 
and fed to horses and cattle. One small ship had already 
sailed with a load of pomegranates for Egypt. The island 
raises cotton when there is sufficient rain. In the evening 
our ship sailed away to the east. Barnabas was a native of 
Cyprus, and Paul preached on this island. In the morning 



144 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

of October 14th, I arose early. We were still sailing east. 
The sun rose, throwing brilliant golden light over ship and 
sea, with not a cloud to mar the bluest of skies. We were 
approaching the main land of Asia and soon came to anchor 
off Tripoli, so named because there are three villages at this 
port. 

As our ship sailed away to the south toward noon, we were 
approaching the Lebanon mountains. Thyre is not a more 
handsome sight than we saw on the slopes of these mountains, 
covered with mulberry trees and vineyards. These slopes are 
settled with Arabs mostly, and they raise much silk for weav- 
ing table covers and other fabrics famous the world over. There 
are many third class passengers on these steamers, and instead 
of being put down in the steerage, they occupy the lower 
deck, and only pay passage on the steamer. They have their 
blankets of bright oriental colors, and bring on their bread 
and fruit, boarding themselves. They sleep in rows on the 
deck, in the open air. I glanced down the deck — Maronite 
priests, Jesuits, veiled Turkish women, Greeks, Turks, in al! 
sorts of costumes ; some of them sitting down with their 
legs curled up, eating, smoking, others talking or walking 
around. Truly, a wonderful and novel sight ! 

We came to anchor in Beirout harbor, a city scattered over 
a sloping hill projecting into the sea, of about 125,000 popula- 
tion. As I sat on the steamer's deck, I could count over 
twenty villages up on the slopes of the beautiful and fertile 
Lebanon mountains. Some of them were on the top of mount- 
ains three or four thousand feet high. I do not think checks 
are used much, as bags of gold and silver are seen often com- 
ing on or going off the steamer. At every port we enter 
the yellow flag of quarantine is displayed aloft, until the ship's 
papers are examined and until the officer of the port declares 
the ship clear, no communication is had with the land; 
then the flag is taken down. We saw five ships in the har- 
bor, anchored, all flying the yellow flag. They had come 
from Egypt, where the cholera is prevalent and each one must 
go under a quarantine of 12 days. The passengers must 



EPHESUS, DAMASCUS AND PALESTINE. 145 

either stay on the ship or go into some barrack-looking 
buildings on the shore. All of the day succeeding our 
arrival the steamer laid in this port. We went ashore, giving 
up our passports to the Turkish officials at the custom house, 
as all the small boats land and depart from that point on the 
shore at every port. We walked up to the Protestant col- 
lege under the management of President Bliss. The college 
term of school was to commence the next day. We saw a 
room about twelve feet square packed with young men regis- 
tering for the term. Nearly all wore red caps and some had 
on flowing robes. They were constantly arriving by carriage, 
with their satchels and little trunks, and by the flash of their 
eyes and elastic step they would compare favorably with 
scholars gathering for an American college. This college 
is under the auspices of the Presbyterians. The location over- 
looking the blue Mediterranean is fine, the buildings are good, 
and the sowing of Christian ideas and teaching among these 
young men from every land in this vicinity must bear much 
fruit. 

We returned to the steamer, having the privilege of paying 
one piastre each to the official for safely keeping our pass- 
ports, as he returned them. Just as the shades of evening 
gathered over land and sea, our ship sailed away to the 
south. At last, after weeks of expectation, we were about to 
enter the "promised land." I arose very early. The ship was 
at anchor off the port of Haifa. The large, almost full, moon 
was just setting over the edge of Mount Carmel. This port 
or town is on the edge of this noted mountain, and the harbor 
almost takes a turn to the south, behind this mountain coming 
boldly into the sea. 

At the north of Mount Carmel we could almost see the 
Plain of Esdraelon, as the sun rose over the hills of Galilee, 
lighting up the sea, ship and mount with tinted colors of 
amber and copper. Away to the northeast, arising in a high 
dome-shaped peak, we saw mount Hermon, nearly ten thous- 
and feet in altitude. On the inner circle of the bay, not far 
to the north, is the old town of Accho, now called Acre, where 



146 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

the new Christ (Abbi Effendi) is getting many followers, even 
in America. How beautiful Mount Carmel looked, with 
houses dotting its sides and a little grotto near the end of the 
mountain claimed to mark the location of a cave that Elijah 
lived in. The ship soon sailed away for Jaffa. How jubilant 
we were as the next port would be the last and then we could 
enter the "promised land." As we rounded a low cape pro- 
jecting seaward from Mount Carmel, and sailing quite far 
to sea on account of shoal water then the ship sailed south. 
We were much interested in watching the hills and mountains 
of Samaria. The breeze was cool and bracing coming directly 
from the land. I looked along the upper deck. Over one- 
half of the people were priests dressed in flowing robes, mostly 
black, wearing caps the shape of a stove pipe with a little 
crown on top also black. Surely it needed no other proof 
that we were approaching the most religious city in the world. 
The mountains of Samaria were soon passed and we saw the 
Jewish colony established by the site of old Csesarea. The 
plain of Sharon covering a wide stretch of land along the 
coast looked nice and level, and over behind the low mount- 
ains of Samaria to the northwest we could catch glimpses 
of the Plain of Esdraelon. Soon the hills of Judea came in 
sight beyond the Plain of Sharon as this Plain extends to the 
environs of Jaffa. The banks of land next to the sea were 
only a few feet high, yet too high for us to see much of the 
Plain. As we came to anchor off the port of Jaffa with our 
yellow flag flying as usual, a boat came from the shore also 
flying a yellow flag and reported much cholera at Gaza 
and two suspected cases in Jaffa with a prospect of quarantine 
toward Jerusalem. After a very exciting time, most of the 
passengers got into boats all flying the yellow flag, with boats 
watching the ship that no one might come on board. We 
decided to stay on board the ship until morning. As morn- 
ing came the captain went on shore and reported that quaran- 
tine was established, surely catching the passengers landed; 
and the ship unloaded its freight into boats, with boats flying 
the quarantine flag watching the ship. Two hundred passen- 



EPHESUS, DAMASCUS AND PALESTINE. 147 

gers made application for passage, but all were refused. We 
concluded to turn back and not land, and paid our fare back 
to Haifa. 

As we did so, I thought of the giant cholera and the prob- 
able cordon of quarantine stalking as high and fierce looking 
as any of the giants that the children of Israel ever saw We 
were the only two passengers on the upper deck and only four 
more on the ship. Where were all the rest? Gone into the 
promised land. Only fifty-three miles from Jerusalem where 
all our mail was, not hearing a word from home for weeks 
yet so scared by the giants that we turned away. Alas • How 
sorrow ul we were, and had the same feelings that some or 
the children of Israel must have had as they turned back one 

ctL-H, u €Sh - BarnCa - The rudder rolled ' the chains 
creaked, the ship jarred, and over on one side the friction 

of chain, rope or rigging sang a little rhyme of plaintive song 
tull of mourning and sadness. 

I looked around. Elmer sat astride of the roof over the 
steering gear, looking at the port of Jaffa, fast retreating in 
the distance and beyond into the mountains. He looked limp 
almost hopeless, courage turned into weakness and was hum- 
ming a little tune full of mournful cadence. Just before sun- 
set we sailed into the harbor of Haifa again. We would 
camp into Jerusalem from there. The ship stopped ready to 
anchor and a boat put off from shore flying the quarantine 
Mag. As soon as it came in hailing distance the officials said 
the ship cou d not touch as the governor had put a quarantine 
around Haifa ten days. The captain asked if we could land. 

* IT r*T thC rCply - The Ship turned an <* sailed for 
the north. What would become of us? When would our 
wanderings out of the "promised land" end? Would we ever 
enter and where? 

Tu h lu m tT.'r* SCtting ° ver the top of Mo » nt Carmel. 
The hills of Galilee wore bright colors and a long row of tall 

palms, almost under the shadow of Mount Carmel, looked 

BeTr^f ^ "^ "° a,ternatlVe bUt t0 W our 'fare to 
Beirout, the next port north. Our calculations were all re- 



148 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

placed by reflections; cast down, but not dismayed; jubilant 
•feelings gone, yet full of hope. We would go in via Syria. 
During the night we came to anchor off Beirout. Saturday 
morning came, and while I was pacing the deck the captain 
went ashore. A boat soon appeared, a doctor came on 
board and all the crew and the six passengers were walked 
before him. Another boat and doctor came and the decision 
was we must be quarantined ten days. 

They left a guard with yellow bands of cloth tied to his 
arms, and we were drifted to a position among other ships 
that were in quarantine, all with the little yellow flag flying 
aloft. Relentless fate, how inexorable thy lines are ! We 
were prisoners and only had the ship to walk about on, and 
were never in prison before. 

Not in some prison dark and drear; 

Not where the sun could not cheer; 

Not in chains or dungeons deep, 

Not where nature could not speak. 
I know of no place in the world where as prisoners, we could 
see, think and catch such grand thoughts. Were not these the 
. mountains of Lebanon where the cedars grew? Did not Job 
speak of their movement; Solomon sang of their excellence, 
and Daniel said the righteous "shall grow like a cedar in 
Lebanon." In ist Kings, chapter five, you will read of the 
thousands of men sent into these mountains after cedar. 

We watched the camels walking on a road near the shore. 
We watched the sunset, lighting up every nook, hill, knoll 
or dale on the slopes of Lebanon, catching their mountain 
tops, villages and rock in colors of brilliant beauty. We 
watched the moon rise, and as its mystery of light caught 
sea, ship and city, we let its soft mellow rays encircle us 
until we were wrapped in a vision of such ethereal light 
that we lost all thought of being in prison, just dreaming 
beautiful dreams of heaven and home. Sunday morning I 
arose early and sat on deck wrapped in reverie. The guard 
was still pacing back and forth. An autumn day of just 
that degree of comfortable warmth with all of the sun's 



EPHESUS, DAMASCUS AND PALESTINE. 149 

brightness— the very best of nature's gifts. About 8 o'clock 
I saw a boat coming to the ship flying the Turkish flag, 
and on board were two doctors. They said a telegram had 
been received from Constantinople saying we would be re- 
leased from quarantine if we all passed inspection. The 
crew and the six passengers all walked before the doctors 
and they set the ship free. How our hearts leaped with 
joy, and gathering up our luggage, not forgetting to tie 
our books under our arms again, and went ashore, passed 
the custom house, and hailing a cab were soon at the Vic- 
toria hotel, made a bargain for a room and then began to 
realize how magical the word "freedom" is when a prisoner 
is set free. What a wonderful view from our room, look- 
ing into a large garden. India rubber trees, orange, fig, lem- 
on, pomegranate, pride of India (our Chinese umbrella 
trees), locust, loquat, apricot trees with fruit on them. 

Hired girls get 50 or 60 cents a week and the men no 
more— about 10 cents a day; yet the American vice-consul 
told me one American girl would do as much as five of the 
Syrians. The passion for gambling pervades all classes, 
rich and poor. They have a game they call in Arabic, "Trick 
Track." The wealthy send to Paris for their dresses, and 
French gold is used more than any other gold. The prin- 
cipal exports of Beirout are silk and wool. Camels, don- 
keys and men, called porters, all compete in carrying goods 
or freight about the streets. These porters have been known 
to carry a piano alone on their backs up two flights of stairs. 
I saw them so heavily loaded that they could only move a 
few inches at a time. We went into the American Mis- 
sion printing works, the second largest mission printing 
house in the world. They print a good many Arabic Bi- 
bles, selling more in Egypt than in Asia. It is a grand in- 
stitution, under Presbyterian auspices. We applied through 
the American consul for tezkaras to travel on. He procured 
them for us of the Turkish officials and we paid, including 
service, ten francs each, and this only reached Baalbec and 
Damascus. It appears that there are two sects of Greeks 



150 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

in Asia Minor — Greek orthodox and Catholic. The Greek 
Catholic bishop died not long ago and was buried sitting 
up, and carried through the streets to his grave, held in a 
sitting posture in the carriage. The room we had and all 
the other rooms in the hotel were fully twenty feet high, 
and many rooms in the private houses are as high. We 
decided to go to Damascus and purchased our tickets at six- 
teen francs and forty-five centimes each. The morning of 
our departure for Damascus I was awakened by a peculiar 
chanting song at a neighboring house in sight from one of 
our windows. The language used was Hebrew. It was a 
Jewish family and it was getting towards the close of their 
"Feast of the Harvest," and they were saying their prayers. 
I had noticed a good many houses in Beirout that had on 
their back porches booths erected. They were to keep this 
feast of eight days. Some had tents in their yards. This 
family commenced this chanting or prayer at about 4 o'clock 
in the morning, and in their constancy and fervor were full 
of devotion, although I could not understand a word. This 
service continued until sunrise. Hiring a cab, we drove to 
the railway station, passing by many places where in little 
shops the Syrians were weaving silk and cotton goods by 
machinery, very crude in construction. We passed a foun- 
tain where many women were waiting to carry water away 
in jars or jugs on their heads. As we arrived at the station 
Elmer took our tickets to the office to have a "visa" put on 
them, and we had to sign them. Our tezkaras were de- 
manded and the porter was placing our baggage on the table 
for inspection. I grasped the situation and handed a beshi- 
lick to a Turkish official and then the porter was allowed to 
carry the luggage direct to the train. We began to climb 
the Lebanon mountains in places so steep in grade that 
the rack and pinion system is used on the steepest grades. 
Tall date palms, many groves of mulberry, fig, cactus and 
carob trees, olive orchards and bunches of grass looking like 
pampas plumes were the first features of scenery. At many 
places as we climbed these rocky mountains the city of Bei- 



EPHESUS, DAMASCUS AND PALESTINE. 151 

rout lay gleaming in the morning sun, thousands of feet be- 
low us and in the distance, like a pamting, the bright, blue, 
rippling Mediterranean sea stretched away until sea and 
sky were blended together in a haze of soft autumn colors. 
Whole mountain sides terraced in little plots, many villages, 
nearly all Arab and noted the world over for their silk fa- 
brics, women robed in colors that are matchless in design, 
yet wholly oriental. We saw miles of terraced vineyards, 
where all the trunks of the grapevines are trained to lie 
flat on the ground, all pointing one way; the country road to 
Beirout, full of asses, camels and Arabs; beautiful wild 
flowers peering at us from the wayside — all together as we 
climbed over this great Lebanon range of mountains this 
mild October day, was unlike anything yet seen in our trav- 
els, and for novelty, charm and real beauty I believe there 
is nothing like it in all the world. Now and then I saw a 
little mound of fresh dirt thrown up by the roadside, re- 
sembling the gopher mounds in California. Lebanon prov- 
ince is practically independent, as it is under the suzerainty 
of the European powers and pays no taxes to Turkey, having 
a governor appointed acceptable to the powers. 

As we passed over the crest of the Lebanon range of moun- 
tains we saw the Syrian farmers plowing on the little plots 
of ground among the rocks and on the mountain tops, with 
the smallest of oxen and the crudest plows. On the moun- 
tain sides the smallest of plots were made by piling the loose 
rocks ^n the lower side, thus forming a terrace very narrow, 
and sometimes only a few feet long. Some mountain sides 
were such ridgy ledges of rock that there was no chance to 
plow for grain. 

The villages, as we passed down the eastern slope, were 
so gray with age that they were the color of the rocks about 
them. The roofs of the houses were flat, and many of the 
Arabs were walking on them. 

Our train rolled down the eastern slope cf these great Leb- 
anon mountains into an upland valley of about ten miles in 
width and extending as far as we could see each way, lying 



152 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

between the Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon ranges. This valley, 
as we entered it, is about three thousand feet above sea level, 
and sloping towards the north with a heavy upward grade. 
I was surprised to see the grandest mountain of Biblical his- 
tory in the Anti-Lebanon mountains, some distance to the 
south of us, yet the valley we were in is very narrow and 
hilly as it passes Mount Hermon. As we came to a station 
called Ryak out in the valley, we left the train, called for 
our tickets, which our conductor had, and after lunch board- 
ed a train standing there for Baalbec. 

Our distance to Baalbec, about twenty miles up this val- 
ley, called the Plains of Beeka, was a ride where all about 
us, in association, in charm of landscape, thought and his- 
tory, cannot be excelled in all the world. Tradition claims 
that here Noah built the ark, and as the word "gopher" 
used in the Bible is synonymous with "cedar," the story is 
quite likely to be true, for did not the cedars grow here ? And 
the only grove of them left is over in the Lebanon mountains, 
about fourteen miles west of Baalbec. As the train passed up 
the valley not far from the center, I heard Elmer exclaim, 
"This is the prettiest valley I ever saw !" I looked around. 
The villages were old and gray, except that the fronts of 
most of their houses are painted or whitewashed, shaded in- 
to a blue, all in a cluster, with long stretches of country be- 
tween, except here and there were Bedouin Arabs, living in 
black tents. 

The shades of color over mountain, hill and plain were 
what attracted Elmer's attention. I have never seen any 
scenery just like it in any country. It is entirely treeless 
and hard to describe. There were some small clouds in the 
sky, just enough to scatter bits of sunshine and shadow, and 
were an angel or some giant sitting on top of one of these 
small clouds, having before him a reservoir full of the col- 
ors of a rainbow, then taking a huge bucket would catch 
it full of colors, and with one mighty sweep toss them 
over mountain, hill, nook, dale and plain, in irregular form, 
the effect would be something like what we saw. There was 



EPHESUS, DAMASCUS AND PALESTINE. 153 

just enough wind to catch the white and purple thistle bloom, 
and in its passage through the air we had to look sharply 
to distinguish between bloom and butterfly. 

Caravans of camels were passing up and down the valley 
just the same as in Abraham's time. I saw two irrigating 
heads of water being used on land as in California to pre- 
pare it for plowing and a crop. Shepherds were caring for 
flocks of flat-tailed sheep. Their tails, just one mass of fat, 
with no bone, would weigh from 25 to 30 pounds. At Beirout 
and in the adjoining villages the Syrians purchase these sheep 
for their supply of meat, and fatten them before killing, and 
their tails get so large and heavy that they fix a yoke on the 
sheep's back to tie the tail to it, otherwise the sheep cannot 
walk. All the sheep we saw were fat and flat-tailed. 

Our train kept up this valley all the time on a heavy grade, 
over lands as fertile and handsome as ever the sun shone 
upon. About 4 o'clock in the afternoon we saw in the dis- 
tance, on the edge of the plain, over next to the Anti-Leb- 
anon range of mountains, some ruins, very imposing in ap- 
pearance, surrounded by green trees and gardens. The train 
stopped at a small station. We alighted, hired a carriage, 
and were soon in the Palmyra Hotel, and not far away,' 
in view from the windows of our room, we saw some large, 
tall pillars still standing, marking the place of one of the 
most remarkable ruins in the world. We walked out through 
the little dirty, crooked streets of the Arab village, dodging 
by camels and donkeys, and were confronted by the still 
standing walls, some of them seventy to eighty feet high, 
fourteen feet thick, and with a circumference of 3300 feet, 
all looking so great and formidable that we turned back 
(concluding to go early the next morning) and walked upon 
a small mountain to see the sun set and take a look at our 
surroundings. Already a feeling of amazement was creeping 
upon us, and as we looked down upon the massive walls, and 
caught sight of pillar, column and cornice still standing- 
all on a scale of such magnitude we wondered who 
the men were to erect such a wonderful structure. The sun 



154 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

set on the ruins, lighting them with warm colors, and the 
chill of night came on. We walked back to our room, and 
just before retiring looked out. The ruins were wrapped 
in the mystery of moonlight. The stars twinkled, and na- 
ture everywhere was clad in robes of sweet repose. The next 
morning with much expectation we paid a megida each (about 
85 cents) to the Turkish officials and entered the only open- 
ing, as these immense walls have no doors or windows. 

We walked along a great subterranean passage, one hun- 
dred and twenty feet long, about twenty feet high, and the 
same in width, built of very large stones, elegantly hewn 
and fitted together without cement. The passage was arched 
overhead. Before the days of gunpowder it would have been 
impossible for an army to enter this great citadel. This im- 
mense enclosure we came into was still more startling. I 
saw rocks in the walls over thirty feet high that would weigh 
seven hundred tons or more, about thirty-four feet long and 
eight feet square. I saw other rocks near the foundation of 
one of the great temples inside that are still larger and would 
probably weigh one thousand tons. I measured some mar- 
ble pillars, all one monolith, 23 feet long and three feet in 
diameter. I measured columns sixteen feet long and about 
seven feet in diameter. These columns were put up one 
above the other, so nicely squared together as they stood per- 
pendicularly that the fitting was hardly discernable. Six of 
these great columns were still standing in the Temple of the 
Sun, of the original forty-six erected in three sections, and 
over fifty feet high, and then surmounted by capital and cor- 
nice. No roof; three hundred feet long and about half as 
wide. All day long, when not cloudy, the sun shone down 
in this great temple. The mountains and the sky were the 
framework between these immense columns, where multitudes 
of worshippers could burn incense and worship the sun. 
There was also the Temple of Jupiter, about eighty feet long 
and fifty feet wide, with columns as large or larger, and 
another temple much larger than any other, called the Pan- 




TEMPLE OF JUPITEH 

BAALBEK. 



EPHESUS, DAMASCUS AND PALESTINE. 155 

theon, where there was room and shrines enough to worship 
all the gods, over two hundred. 

There were many smaller temples. The marble columns 
could not have been quarried in Asia, but must have come 
from Egypt. On capital, base, portico, or fountain there were 
carved vines, wreaths, cupids, leaves of acanthus and lotus, 
and all the niches were once filled with gods and goddesses. 
All the stone to build the walls was quarried about one mile 
away, and I saw left in the quarry one stone that I meas- 
ured, it being thirteen feet square and sixty-nine feet long, 
corresponding to the three we saw near the foundation in 
the walls. Where in the twilight of time, and who were 
the men who by any means could move such stones and 
erect them with such precision in the wall? Did the immor- 
tal gods lend a hand to conceive and execute such a cyclopean 
structure? 

For several hours we walked about in and among the won- 
derful ruins of these different Temples at Baalbec. Broken 
pillars, capitals, bases and huge pieces of cornice pillared door- 
ways, broad, beautiful stairways, old pavements, marble foun- 
tains and sculpture everywhere. How our emotions were 
stirred. No modern appliances could handle these vast stones. 
The scale of size does not fit into our age and times. Marks 
of Grecian and Roman occupation are evident but far back 
of their times in the misty past these foundations were laid. 
How did men move stones weighing over iooo tons and lay 
them in a wall? How were such pillars as seven feet in di- 
ameter and many feet long elevated sixty feet into the air and 
placed directly over another pillar? 

We turned away puzzled, mystified, unable to solve the rid- 
dle, dumfounded, astonished and entirely unable to compre- 
hend by what manner of men or what means this construction 
occured. We boarded our train about noon and returned to 
Ryak where we alighted and again took the train for Damas- 
cus (the oldest city in the world.) In crossing the Anti Leb- 
anon range of mountains, I saw one or two small pieces of al- 
falfa and many silver leaf poplars along the streams of water, 



156 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

in the little valley as we ascended the mountains. These 
mountains are extremely rocky with a little valley of good 
land and abundance of water as we passed over and down 
towards Damascus. Not far away lay the ruins of Queen 
Zenobia's aqueduct of over two hundred miles in length to 
carry water to Palmyra, the Tadmar that Solomon built. As 
we descended the mountains by the side of a racing river, pass- 
ing little villages of Arabs with their houses of flat roofs so 
close together that they walked along on the housetops we 
saw very large apricot, fig and silver-leaf poplar trees, and a 
few English walnuts. On the mountain sides there were many 
caves in the rocks with Arabs living in some of them. I 
saw a few apple and maple trees and black-berry bushes by 
the side of their irrigating ditches. Flocks of goats on the 
treeless mountains, where not a bush or spear of grass was to 
be seen, all ridges of rock lying in regular rows. Many camels 
on the road and one was so frightened at the train that he 
threw a man off from his back as we passed. 

Coming out of the mountains with gardens and trees all 
about us, we soon came to a station with many carriages in 
waiting and alighted. We were in Damascus ; the meaning of 
the word being "Shem" and it is thought Shem the son of 
Noah, founded the city. The station and principal hotels are 
outside of the walled city and for five days we had a room in 
the Victoria Hotel, where we could see the river Abana as 
it flowed by in sight of our window, and heard the music of 
its rippling waters whenever we were awake in the night time. 
We saw men wading around each day, casting a drag net (the 
same kind used in Bible times) and catching little fish. Large 
fish can be caught the same way, only there is nothing but 
small fish left to catch in this river. There are lead weights 
on the end of the net and the natives are very skilful in folding 
them up in such a manner that like a flash they hurl them a dis- 
tance of twenty or thirty feet, then they draw the net in, and 
reach their hands under catching the fish and placing them in 
a basket hanging by their side. Abraham must have often 



EPHESUS, DAMASCUS AND PALESTINE. 157 

been in Damascus as Eleazer, his steward was a native of 
this city. 

Not far away we could see the mountains of Hauran, 
\shere Job lived two hundred and eighty years, a beautiful, 
fertile country with much level land; the asme land as the 
"land of Uz" and noted in these days for its wonderful crops 
of wheat and barley. Every morning we were awakened early 
by troops of black donkeys, being driven into the city by our 
window, running along on a dog trot, each drove having a bell 
strung on its leader jingling along. Every evening not far 
away across the river many hundreds of crows came to roost 
in a grove of tall silver-leaf poplar trees. What a cawing and 
circling about. At nearly any time of day camels were pass- 
ing by in and out of the city. Everywhere passing pictures of 
Oriental life, so wonderfully varied, interesting and pictur- 
esque. 

On entering the city (the walled part) we inquired for 
Straight street. We walked its entire length nearly the whole 
distance across the city. A part of the way the street is 
arched over with a roof and the other part has small short 
curves in its course. How wonderfully true the Bible is as in 
speaking of this street it says "called Straight." We visited 
the house of Annanias and the place where Paul was let 
down over the wall is near this house. The house of Naaman 
the leper is not far from the east entrance of Straight street 
outside of the walls, and is now used as a leper hospital. As 
far as drainage and the sanitary conditions of these cities 
are concerned the situation is dreadful. Human excrement 
is as common on the streets as from horses in American cities 
and where there are no sidewalks and the streets only from 
six to ten feet wide, you can easily imagine the condition. 
Much pearl of shell work especially on furniture is made. 
Weaving cotton, silk and wool or camels hair curtains, and 
draperies are a great industry, wholly oriental in taste and 
designs. Three of the richest men to be worth 30,00000 
pounds were pointed out to me. All the stores as a mark of 
courtesy to their customers have coffee served on trays in 



158 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

almost the smallest of cups and as a mark of special favor, 
serve violet water while the trading is going on. In all cities 
of Turkish rule the telephone and electricity are not allowed, 
therefore there is no power, and we saw wood turning where 
the power is by hand, also all the weaving. Workers in brass, 
copper and silver are very common as Oriental people buy 
and use the product of these clever artificers of metal, more 
than our American people. I fancy they are working the same 
way as in olden times. 

On Saturday, the Jews' Sabbath day, I walked through their 
quarters. It was in the afternoon. I saw many of the ladies 
dressed up making calls, while the gentlemen wear long coats 
looking like cloaks. Many of them are very poor. There are 
all sorts of people on the streets, among them many pilgrims 
to Mecca and Circassians from Russia. On Sunday I went 
to a little English church. About fifty English and Americans 
were present and three Arabs, dressed in camels hair coats 
and cheffieurs wound with braids of goat hair about their 
heads. I saw one of the Arabs fall asleep during the preach- 
ing, yet that was nothing strange as I have seen people fall 
asleep in America during service. One feature of the service 
I do not recollect of ever noticing in America was, they passed 
the collection plate to the preacher. 

There are forty-two Moslem mosques in Damascus. We 
went into the largest one. It will hold several thousand peo- 
ple. It is said there are ten thousand Persian rugs on the 
floor as the entire floor surface is covered with them. Some 
of them are very costly and many of them are such beautiful 
patterns that an empress might covet them. Nobody, not even 
Moslems are allowed to wear their shoes as they enter. One 
can either go barefoot, wear their stockings or draw on a 
pair of slippers. Many Moslems are there, either at prayer or 
reading the Koran. Mohammedans pray five times each twen- 
ty-four hours, at sunrise, at noon, between three and four in 
the afternoon, at sunset, and at midnight (if they are awake.) 
They always face Mecca as they pray, and bow to the floor or 
earth wherever they are several times. 



EPHESUS, DAMASCUS AND PALESTINE. 159 

Damascus is the largest city in Syria, about one quarter of 
a million is its population. Swirls of dust, dogs in almost 
countless numbers, furnishing a free concert every night As 
you walk the narrow, dirty streets, you will run against don- 
keys or camels at every turn. I have seen small logs about 
twenty feet long on camels backs and also wood and stone. 
The bazaars are almost countless in the arched streets, and 
become monotonous. Venders of Turkish delight and vari- 
ous sweets are all along the streets. Down in the dust on the 
streets with only a tray to lay the bread on are the bread 
merchants selling bread. 

During our stay of five days in Damascus we contracted 
with a dragoman to camp to Jerusalem, a distance of nearly 
two hundred miles, as we planned the trip. We were to be 
furnished with tents, horses, food and bedding at fifty francs 
a day. As it was quite doubtful, on account of cholera, of 
ever getting to Jerusalem in this manner, we further aranged 
that, if compelled to go into quarantine at any point, we were 
to pay one-half of the full amount (twenty-five francs each 
day) and all the quarantine expenses connected with the gov- 
ernment, which is a variable and unknown quantity in this 
land of misrule. 

Most of the time we were in Damascus there was a gray 
haze settled down on mountain, plain and city. The day before 
our departure the haze cleared away. There is a tall mountain 
near and overlooking the city and country on the north. The 
Mohammedans claim that Mohammed climbed this mountain 
and as he looked around, said : "This is the paradise of the 
world." We climbed the mountain. They claim that this was 
the veritable "Garden of Eden." Not wholly improbable, as 
for several miles in each direction, except the north, one vast 
park of gardens where fruit trees of many kinds grow wild, 
and among them the largest apricot, fig, and English walnut 
trees that I ever saw. In this afternoon's sun the many minar- 
ets of the mosques, the arched roofs over the streets and the 
sun's bright rays, and in pleasing contrast, like the setting of 



160 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

a picture, the foliage of fruit and shade tree encircling the city 
looked like a real picture of paradise, peace and plenty. 

As far as our eyes could reach toward Mecca we saw a 
stretch of plain and low mountain ranges, while in the south- 
west was the "Land of Hauran" and beyond the "Land of 
Moab." Just at the foot of the mountain for over two miles 
and next to the city are thousands of Mohammedan graves. 
They use no coffins and dig the graves very shallow, and to 
keep the dogs from digging use concrete work. I saw five 
men and four veiled women all sitting curled up by the side 
of a grave mourning, one of them singing a mournful tune and 
swaying back and forth. As we passed through this immense 
cemetery, the taint of decaying bodies caused us to hold our 
breath as we hurried on. Association and history sometimes 
has much to do with the beauty of a view; yet, without these 
features, there is no finer view in all the world than this old 
city of Damascus, embowered as it is by such extensive gar- 
dens of luxuriant foliage, fertility and beauty. Josephus tells 
us that Abraham was a reigning prince at one time, of this city. 
The large mosque, uoo feet long and 800 feet wide, with four 
or five minarets, is the most conspicious building for religious 
worship in the world. The site of this mosque was once a pa- 
gan temple, then a Christian house of worship, and said to 
contain the head of John the Baptist encased in a basket of 
gold, then for the last twelve hundred years this great mosque 
has been a Mohammedan place of worship. Damascus has 
been called "the pearl city of the East," and as we turned away 
and cast a lingering look from this projecting spur of the great 
Anti Lebanon mountains, over city and plain, the landscape 
over all touched with tints of amber and gold from the rays of 
the setting sun there came to me a consciousness that : 

One may roam in every clime 
And never find a pearl so fine : 

Of wondrous luster and matchless hue, 

There never was a pearl so true. 

What a wealth of thought the true traveler can catch every 

day and in every place. The next morning, October 27, a 




CAMPING FROM DA MAS" - 



EPHESUS, DAMASCUS AND PALESTINE. 161 

bright, cool, clear autumn day, our cavalcade gathered for a 
camping trip to Jerusalem. There were five horses, one don- 
key, two muleteers, a dragoman and ourselves. Two of the 
horses and the donkey were required to carry the tents, bag- 
gage, bedding and food. The muleteers walked. About eight 
o'clock in the morning with our faces set towards Jerusalem, 
we started. How our emotions were stirred on account of the 
cholera. Would or could we get through? 

As we started on either side of the road were the largest 
"adobe" bricks I ever saw, laid in walls. They were about 
thirty by thirty-six inches in size, and beyond were gardens 
full of trees, flowers and vegetables. Some of the gardens 
had rope walks and natives were weaving rope by hand. The 
fruit trees were mostly apricots, some pomegranate trees. On 
this road, near Damascus, Paul was converted. No one knows 
just the place, yet we traveled over the same road. We rode 
to the West all day, skirting the Anti Lebanon mountains near 
the "Land of Hauran." Most writers locate the river Pharpar 
in Damascus city. Some call this river a tributary of the 
Jordan. I cannot understand how anybody can make such a 
mistake. It was nearly night before we crossed the river 
Pharpar, many miles from Damascus city, yet in the same 
province and many miles from any of the sources of the Jor- 
dan. As we rode along we saw much of country life among 
"the Arabs, many of them plowing for their grain crop. We 
were interested in watching the women gather weeds 
in the fields for fuel and then carry them to their village, on 
the top of their heads. Some of them had donkeys and 
would load them with such huge bundles that we could only 
see the donkey's head and tail. After noon our course over 
the well-worn trails carried us away from the plains and 
nearer the mountains, with rocks all about us and successive 
canyons or gulches, called in this country "wadys." We were 
astonished as we rode along, finding our Syrian horses so 
sure and nimble footed with nothing but rocks, and, in 
many places, steep and slippery ones, to climb over. We had 
eft the old Roman road running in a direct course to Je- 



162 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

rusalem, and were traveling to reach Caesarea Philippi at 
one of the sources of the Jordan. In one wady we saw a 
flock of fine large partridges. The weather was cool, clear 
and delightful. Not until nearly sundown did we reach a 
branch of the Pharpar river, containing about iooo inches of 
water. Here is quite a large Arab village and I saw on these 
steep slopes about ioo acres of Indian corn all topped just 
above the ears. It had been grown with irrigation. Tired and 
hungry, yet we rode along to another village and camped 
there. 

In the waning twilight we walked through the village. The 
streets were only little crooked paths. Donkeys, Arabs and 
chickens all seem to live in about the same quarters. We saw 
the women milking goats on top of the houses. Rough stone 
walls, roofed ones, with a rude door for an entrance, just 
about completes a description of each house. Some of them 
had little apertures for windows. Arab faces were peering 
at us, and troops of dogs were everywhere. We walked back 
to our camp, which was only a short distance, and just by the 
side of it were the threshing floors where these villagers had 
gathered their Indian corn and were threshing it out with long 
straight clubs. The ears of corn lay in oblong heaps, about 
three feet thick, and either two or four men would range 
themselves on each side and pound away with all their might. 
Each blow was accompanied with a grunt, almost as loud 
as the sound of the stroke. 

This work did not stop until darkness cast its mantle all 
the landscape o'er. Every village or tribe has a sheik which 
is the head or chief. He came to visit us and we hired two 
of his men at one franc each to stand guard through the night. 
As they made their appearance, all wrapped up in "abbas," 
their name for cloaks, and carrying such old-looking guns 
that I wondered which would suffer the most if they ever 
fired them at a robber, as the guns looked as though they 
might kill both ways. One is quite safe in these villages after 
hiring some of them as a guard, and that is a cheaper and 
better way than to take soldiers and their horses along as an 



^PHESUS, DAMASCUS AND PALESTINE. 163 

armed escort. How sweet the supper tasted after the drago- 
man made some tea and announced it was ready. 

Camped as we were not many miles away from the base of 
Mount Hermon, we found before morning that it was quite 
difficult to keep warm. Eating our breakfast before sunrise, 
we began to think that there is more prose than poetry in 
camp life. The scores of dogs kept up for our benefit a free 
concert all night, which together with the cold, had deprived 
us of needed rest and sleep. The Arabs were threshing out 
their corn, others husking, and some went off with their small 
oxen to plow, all before sunrise. I walked down the slope 
and saw some large fig and carob trees, also a grove of silver 
leaf poplars, growing in a damp place. I ate blackberries 
from bushes twenty feet high. 

Returning to camp we again mounted our Syrian steeds 
and started out, still traveling to the west. We were in full 
sight of Mount Hermon. As far as we could see, not a tree 
was in sight anywhere about the mountain, and its dome of 
three peaks, although at a distance looking like one, was 
tinged with shades of purple, violet and gray Some bits of 
good land, free from rocks, and many bands of goats and 
herds of cittle nibbling the scanty grass and herbage The 
villages are plenty and most of them were Druses. We 
crossed another tributary of the Pharpar river, in volume 
about 8co inches of water. There were several flocks of 
goats and cattle drinking from the river, and women from 
a village carryini iter on their he->ds in large ju| s ■ ter 
jars. We stw a number of camels feeding on 

We ate our lunch, just halting a few moments i', r h 

ridge, where we obtained our last view of Damasc s >ny 
miles away. South of us were the blue mountiins, not lofty, 
marking the "Land of Hauran." From here unti' we reached 
one of the sources of the Jordan are the worst of rocky trails 
found anywhere. My horse stumbled once and in places 
the grade was so steep and rocky that I was afraid to con- 
tinue riding and dismounted and walked. Nobody ever picks 



164 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

even a loose rock out of the trails, leaving them where they 
roll in. In places solid rock ledges are worn in tracks and 
paths caused by the tramp of feet for centuries. I have seen 
them two or three feet deep, and in soft rock many feet deep. 

Toward evening after picking our way over these rocky 

trails we saw on a high eminence overlooking Banias, which 

is the present name for Caesarea Philippi, the ruins of an 

old castle, one of the last strongholds of the Crusaders, one 

of the grandest ruins in Syria. We did not visit the ruins, 

yet saw them not over a mile away, as our trail wound its 

way down these steep cliffs. We were in the northern part 

of the old "land of Bashan." Large gnarled olive trees and 

some oaks still were standing on the steep mountain sides. 

Toward evening we came to Banias, passed through the 

town with ruins of temple and palace lying about, and pitched 

our camp in an old olive orchard, some of the trees being 

several feet in diameter. We were now on historic ground, 

the extreme northern part of Christ's travels. 

The Grecian city that Christ visited called Caesarea Philippi 
was built three years before Christ's birth. A town called 
Baalrad, in honor of a Canaaniteish god, had occupied the 
place for ages. From the ruins we saw broken columns, old 
towers and portions of the old city wall. Everything must 
have been on a scale of grandeur. Before supper we bathed 
our hands and faces in the limpid waters of the Jordan, as it 
ran with a rippling sound down by our camp. As we retired 
after supper, the crickets were singing with loud voices. All 
through the night, whenever awake, I still heard them in 
great numbers, and I listened to the musical running waters 
of the most mysterious river in the world. I noticed that at 
day-dawn the crickets all stopped singing and then many 
birds continued the song as nature has taught them. 

In the morning we walked up to the source of the river, 
not over three minutes' walk from our camp. There is a 
large cave at the foot of a mountain, now partly filled up 
yet Josephus refers to it as full of water, " so deep that it 




IXTERIOR OF JEWISH HOME, DAMASCUS 
(inner court) 



EPHESUS, DAMASCUS AND PALESTINE. 165 

courd not be measured." About forty feet from the cave, on 
almost level ground among some rocks, not over tyenty feet 
square, this river (not a spring) breaks out and goes rushing 
down the slope like a mountain torrent of fully iooo inches 
of water, perhaps more. At the right of the cave I counted 
five niches cut into the precipice of rock, and here was a 
temple used by the Greeks for the worship of Pan, as in- 
scriptions show. Before this there was a temple of Baal. 
Herod the Great, also built a temple here, dedicating it to 
Augustus Cresar, and after Titus destroyed Jerusalem he was 
received with honors by Agrippa and they returned thanks 
to their gods for victory. All these temples are gone, yet 
this wonderful river is bursting out of these rocks just the 
same as thousands of years ago. We drank heartily, as with- 
out doubt Christ and his disciples did when they were here. 
Eusebius, the historian, visited this place in the third century 
and writes about it as follows : "At Caesarea Philippi, which 
is called Banias by the Phoenicians, there are springs shown 
at the foot of the mountains from which the Jordan rises, 
and on a certain festival day there was usually one person 
thrown into these springs and the victim, by the power 
of some demon in a wonderful manner entirely disappeared." 
Now, the cave and niches cut in the rocks are a sheltering 
place for goats and cattle and have been for centuries, by 
their appearance. 

Fascinated by this wonderful appearance and source of the 
Jordan, we sat and gazed with thrilling emotions. It was in 
this place or vicinity that Jesus asked his disciples, first, how 
the people regarded Him, then as to who they supposed Him 
to be. This brought the answer from Peter : "Thou art the 
Christ, the Son of the living God." Then, perhaps, while 
looking at these temples of heathen worship where these 
circular places we were looking at cut into these great walls 
of rock for worship, occurred the charge to Peter and com- 
mission, "Thou art Peter," the word meaning "Petros" (living 
rock), so different to yonder dead rock where in every curve 



166 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

we saw there was a god to worship, made like an image, but 
all of dead stone. For six days He taught the disciples of His 
crucifixion and coming resurrection here in Csesarea Philippi. 
Then, as the narrative reads, "Christ taketh Peter, James and 
John, his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mount- 
ain." This mountain must have been Mount Hermon. Trav- 
elers, who have stood on the crest of Mount Hermon, tell us 
that on the highest of its three peaks there are the ruins of a 
temple erected for Baal worship. It is also a singular fact 
that all the temples of Baal worship, wherever the ruins of 
them are now found all face Mount Hermon. How 
significant that on the most symmetrical and conspicuous 
mountain, to be seen in all this land of promise and hope, that 
the transfiguration took place! No wonder Peter, in one of 
his letters to the church, speaks of "the holy mount" as he 
refers to that voice from heaven that came from a bright cloud. 
Was it not the most natural language that John could use in 
Rev. 22:1, "A pure river of water of life, clear as crystal." 
Were we not looking at a river clear as crystal? Was not its 
source from Mount Hermon? Did it not come from those 
great rocks where for ages Baal, Pan and heathen gods had 
full sway? To me it was very significant that the God of all 
creation by his presence on the mountain, by his reference to 
these rocks, and by his inspiration in the word John wrote, 
using this river as a figure and as our eyes looked down this 
rushing river we saw fruit trees of various kinds, and their 
leaves "were for the 'health' of the nations," not "healing," 
as the Greek word used is a noun, not a participle. The 
figure John uses, .Rev. 22 :2, "the tree of life," simply symbol- 
izes perpetual immortality; and has not this stretch of tree 
and verdure by the side of this river as we saw it, been a 
perpetual one? 

We returned to our camp at Csesarea Philippi from the 
source of the Jordan finding our horses all saddled and 
mounted again the third day of our camping travels. An old 
cemetery among the largest and oldest oak trees I ever saw, 



EPHESUS, DAMASCUS AND PALESTINE. 167 

first attracted my notice. Then I saw thirty camels all lying 
down and a little farther along twenty-five more, neither 
caravan having broken camp yet. We looked towards Mount 
Hermon's lofty height. We saw the southwestern slopes of 
the mountains leading up to Hermon and were surprised to 
see them covered with vines, trees and verdure, unlike any 
mountains anywhere else in sight. I remembered that in the 
third verse of Psalms, 133rd chapter, there is a blessing pro- 
nounced upon Hermon, and I was only seeing some of the 
"life for evermore." 

I saw a large herd of camels feeding in a corn field where 
the corn had just been gathered, and instead of eating the 
succulent cornstalks, they were reaching their long necks up 
into some trees and browsing on the limbs. I have seen 
camels eating dry weeds when there was green grass just by 
their side. There are men and women in the world craning 
their necks to reach and eat from trees whose limbs are hang- 
ing full of theology, creed, liberal views, criticism and scores 
of other isms, yet there is plenty of green, succulent food 
within reach — all contained within the Word of life. Cae- 
sarea Philippi has about it more trees than any place we have 
seen except Damascus. We passed through oak and tere- 
binth groves looking very large and old. We soon came to 
a place where on a hill about eighty-five feet high the old 
village of Dan was located, and out from under this hill 
there bursts forth into a great river within a few feet of 
radius the largest source of the Jordan. I estimated that 
fully 2500 inches of water leaped forth from under these 
rocks, and with mighty leaps went bounding down its rocky 
course roaring like a new-born cataract. On the eminence an 
Arab village without paint or finish, like all their villages, 
gathered into one compact cluster, lay resting in peaceful 
repose. Along the banks of this newly formed giant of a 
river large herds of sheep and goats under the watchful care 
of shepherds were grazing as in the "days of old." As we 
passed along to the west away from the village I saw an Arab 



168 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

with a rifle slung over his shoulder, mounted on a fine look- 
ing horse covered with rich oriental mountings, riding at 
full gallop. As he passed us clad in flowing robes, he reined 
in his charger, looking toward the village, and while standing 
in his stirrups shouted at the top of his voice. I asked our 
dragoman what he said as his excited manner indicated some 
message. The dragoman replied, "He is telling this village 
that two horses and four camels were stolen last night and 
demands that this village give them up or he and all his 
village will come down and fight them." Not waiting to 
see how the colloquy ended, yet it was a wonderful illustra- 
tion to us of oriental life and ways. We passed hundreds of 
acres of shrubs full of yellow bloom, a few with pink colors. 
We came to another river called the River Dan, having its 
source further north than any of the Jordan sources. This 
river flows along between banks covered with verdure, olean- 
ders in bloom and small trees looking like maple in full leaf 
with many birds singing notes of gleeful sound, and butter- 
flies flitting about on this cloudless autumn day; then I 
began to realize that after many days of waiting and watching 
we had really entered and were traveling in the "land of 
promise." We crossed this river on an old Roman bridge 
with one span between the arches so nearly gone that only a 
little narrow pathway of slippery stones are left, on which we 
carefully treaded our way across. This river had fully 2000 
inches of water, the third important source of the Jordan. 
The old village of Dan is about five miles west of Caesarea 
Philippi, and on the eastern edge of the valley of the Jordan. 
This valley, as we passed down its western edge, is about five 
miles wide. We came to a threshing scene where three oxen 
were treading out maize or corn. I looked to see if they were 
muzzled as I remembered that in the Bible it says : "Thou 
shalt not muzzle the mouth of the ox that treadeth out the 
corn." They had no muzzles on and were being driven round 
and round on a pile of ears of corn. Of course, the corn 
of the Bible is one of the small grains called corn in Europe 




TREADING CORN WITH OXEN, 

JORDAN VALLEY, PALESTINE. 



EPHESUS, DAMASCUS AND PALESTINE. 169 

to this day. On our right were high hills once occupied by 
the tribe of Naphtali. We saw many threshing floors of 
corn, as by using the waters of the Jordan for irrigation, 
many hundreds of acres of corn were being harvested and 
threshed. We saw for the first time the celebrated bulls of 
Bashan, one whole herd of them in the large irrigating ditch 
so covered with water that only their heads were above 
water. In and among the corn stalks and elsewhere we saw 
millions of crows, and I presume some ravens were among 
them. When we were in Russia we thought that country had 
most of the crows, yet we found many all over Palestine. 
Mudturtles were plenty. In one square foot of water I saw 
ten in one bunch. Centuries ago B. C. Abraham pursued the 
kings of Mesopotamia who were carrying Lot and his goods 
into captivity. Their route was over the very ground we 
were traveling on, and Abraham caught them by the village of 
Dan, rescuing Lot and his goods. It was also in Dan that 
Jeroboam built a temple and in it set up a golden calf. Irri- 
gation by these Arabs is carried on in a similar manner to 
irrigation in California where there is abundance of water and 
no cement ditches. Along our course by the side of irrigating 
ditches on the west side of the valley were hundreds of 
Bedouin Arab tents, their entire top made from goats' hair 
and wool, all black. I saw malva, cocklebur and parsley 
among the weeds. As we approached the waters of Lake 
Huleh there were many piles of Egyptian corn by the side of 
the yellow corn. One man very unscripturally had three 
large black "bulls of Bashan" treading out corn and they 
were muzzled. The government gets one-tenth of every- 
thing raised as its share in taxes, also an additional tax is 
levied on the land and each fruit tree. While opposite Lake 
Huleh, or the "Waters of Merom," we crossed another river 
of about 800 inches of water. As the Lebanon mountains 
were not over five hundred yards away with no canyon where 
this river could come down from in sight, we concluded 
to look for the source. Again we were surprised to find this 



170 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

source or tributary of the Jordan springing out of the base 
of a mountain; not a spring, but a river out of the rocks. 
We drank heartily of this water, having now seen three of the 
four sources of the Jordan and the two most important ones. 

The papyrus reeds still grow about the "Waters of Merom," 
— a beautiful sheet of water, gleaming in the rays of the sun 
as we passed by at about four o'clock in the afternoon. We 
were now only about five or six feet above the surface of 
the sea. Just here Joshua slew Jabin, king of Hazor. Urg- 
ing our steedfe along we commenced to climb a rolling plateau 
At our left, not far away, was a Jewish colony called Syn- 
delphia. This word means "meeting of the brothers," it being 
the very spot that Jacob and Esau met. We hurried along 
and at sundown entered a street leading up to a mountain 
side lined with eucalyptus trees, and over in the fields were 
vineyards, mulberry trees and peach orchards. On the side 
of the road are miamosa hedges, and such a road or street, 
all crushed rock without any dirt mixed in. Up and up this 
terrible street until darkness enveloped us in its draping man- 
tle we rode until a place called a hotel was reached , where our 
aching and weary limbs found rest and refreshment while the 
camp equipage was reaching us and getting tents in place. 
We were met with the information that cholera was raging 
in Tiberius, our next camping place, fifty-nine deaths occurring 
there the day before. Our way was blocked. All sorts of 
rumors were in the air. We must try to reach Jerusalem 
some other way. It was extremely doubtful if we could camp 
much farther in any direction without getting into quarantine 
or being turned back. We were in a Jewish colony called 
Jauneh. 

I arose early in the morning. A few feet away a Moham- 
medan was saying his prayers, bowing his head until it 
touched the ground several times, with his face turned 
towards Mecca. Just as the sun rose a very bright sun-dog 
made its appearance by its side in the only bit of cloud in 
sight, looking like an omen of hope, that we might yet be able 



EPHESUS, DAMASCUS AND PALESTINE. 171 

to dodge the cholera and reach Jerusalem. From my point 
of view, perched upon the side of a mountain, I could see 
the extreme northern edge of the sea of Galilee. We con- 
cluded to leave the tent and muleteers, take the dragoman 
only, and ride to the west a few miles to the city of Safed 
in order to get information as to the real situation, as we 
were in a land where in its entire length and breadth, not a 
newspaper is published, except a small paper printed once a 
week, in Jerusalem, in the Hebrew language. We could con- 
sult the Turkish governor of Safed. Before leaving this 
Jewish colony of Jauneh I will note what I saw and heard. A 
few years ago the Rothschilds started a few Jewish colonies 
in Palestine, this one among them. Nice stone houses were 
built, the land purchased, European tools and stock sent out, 
and each member of a Jewish family, after all this start, was 
given a few francs each month in money. The location of 
this village I think, was very injudicious. Built upon a 
steep mountain side where there is very little water, and all 
its good farming lands below it, the farther part of them 
miles away. True to their trading and scheming ways, the 
Jews hired Arabs to do the most of the work at ten or fifteen 
cents a day, and looked on themselves. I saw in one yard, 
loads of barbed wire, torn up after being used. I saw some 
orange trees about large enough to commence bearing, and 
they were trying to irrigate them by digging a little around 
the trunk for the water, wherein the sun with its heat and 
action of the water would hurt the trees. Everything seemed 
impractical, and the head man of the colony told me they 
were all dissatisfied and wished they were back in Europe. 
No wonder, no market, no more subsidy in the way of a few 
francs each month, as the Rothschilds had taken that away. 
The worst road on earth to travel over to get to their work. 
on the steepest of slopes, full of sharp crushed rock the size 
of eggs, each piece as jagged as porcupine quills. Hundreds 
of acres of nice sloping land down towards the Jordan with 
nothing at all growing on it except in places wild carroway 



172 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

as high as a horse stands. Taxation higher with every 
honest effort made to raise something. With the exception 
of a little silk they were raising to sell, I saw nothing else 
to sell except faith in the future, and I do not believe any 
American would give them ten cents on a dollar on the whole 
investment for that part of their outlook. At Syndelphia, 
another colony in sight on level land, the finest in the world, 
they had good houses fenced in with door yards filled with 
flowers, finest of European tools and stock furnished them 
about six years ago, and now I was told the fences were 
gone. The tools lay out in the weather, the flowers dried up. 
No trees, no crops worth mentioning, except weeds. I could 
come to but one conclusion, you cannot make a farmer out of 
a Jew, and the outlook for farming in Palestine is too poor for 
anybody to attempt it under its present Turkish misrule. 
This Jauneh colony alone cost, I think, about $300,000. Leav- 
ing Jauneh we commenced to ascend steep rocky grades tow- 
ard Safed. On these trails in Palestine we were always much 
interested in meeting or passing the "fellaheen," as the country 
people are called. Their variety of mountings, different cos- 
tumes, all carrying so many different products in many differ- 
ent ways, were ever a constant panorama before us of change 
and color. I saw at one place on the trail one camel, six 
asses, three goats and six Arabs, four of them with rifles 
strung over their backs, walking towards Safed. The guns 
looked a hundred years old. We passed many olive orchards 
and in some of them the natives were gathering the fruit. 
They would climb a tree, knock them off with a pole, and the 
women would gather them into baskets from the ground. 
After climbing steep, rocky trails we came to Safed, a city 
of 25,000 people and not a wagon in the city, and the roads 
leading into the city from all sides so steep and rocky that one 
cannot be driven to it or within miles of the place. We drove 
to Dr. George Wilson's house, a Scotch physician resident 
there six years. We were kindly and courteously received 
and he left a room full of patients to accompany us to the 



EPHESUS, DAMASCUS AND PALESTINE. 173 

governor's house. Ophthalmia is a very prevalent disease 
of the eyes and the doctor told me he "treated about two 
hundred people each day, nearly all natives." I saw a whole 
room full of them waiting for him while an assistant was ex- 
amining them. The doctor accompanied us to the Turkish 
governor's house where one large room is used by him for 
official business. We first inquired as to the situation. The 
governor said, while sitting cross-legged on a divan which 
entirely surrounded the room, except the entrance : "Naz- 
areth has just been declared clean, but Hattin and Tiberius 
are very bad. seventy deaths alone in Tiberius yesterday." 
This was fully one per cent of the population of Tiberius 
The governor further said : "There are several villages be- 
tween here and Jerusalem infected with the cholera." Several 
of his advisers and assistants were also curled up cross- 
legged on the cushioned seats. Soon a servant brought a 
tray filled with small cups of coffee, which is always the cus- 
tom in these oriental lands, passing them about to everybody 
present. While sipping the coffee Dr. Wilson asked the gov- 
ernor in Arabic if we could go to the northern part of the 
Sea of Galilee. The answer as interpreted to us was a pre- 
emptory refusal as with the request we asked also for per- 
mission to return to Safed as we knew we could travel no 
farther toward Jerusalem without a paper from the governor, 
that we had been in no infected town or village, thus having 
a clean bill of health. I walked over to the doctor's side and 
told him that if necessary he could arrange to give the gov- 
ernor a Napoleon or two, as it was our only chance of reach- 
ing the Sea of Galilee. The doctor replied to me in English, 
"This is a new governor that is very wealthy and would take 
no gift or bribe." Wherever we mentioned this at other 
places in Palestine our hearers were almost incredulous as it 
was an almost unheard of attitude for any Palestine governor 
to take. The doctor then again told him that we were 
Americans and were endeavoring to camp through the country 
to Jerusalem and would be pleased to reach the northern end 



174 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

of the sea where no cholera had yet appeared. Finally, after 
nearly an hour of persuasion and talk, which is according to 
oriental style, it was arranged that the governor would furn- 
ish us a soldier at sunrise the next morning to accompany us 
to the sea and then would allow us and the dragoman to re- 
turn into the city the next evening. For several days the 
city had been surrounded with an armed cordon of guards 
on every trail and stopping everyone coming from the direc- 
tion of infected towns. The dragomen sent a courier back 
to Jauneh to order the tents along and that afternoon, after 
partaking of lunch in a native English teacher's home, where 
we were partakers of Syrian cooking, we rode about four 
miles northwest of the city where a great Jewish pilgrimage 
takes place each year, as many thousands of Jews from all 
countries in Europe, gather. We saw there a schoolroom 
cut out in the rocks where the Talmud was written some two 
hundred years before Christ, and the two great rabbis who 
wrote the Talmud are buried there. This is a holy place to 
the Jews. The ride up and over rocky hills and through olive 
groves was a delightful one. We hurried back as by invi- 
tation we dined at Dr. Wilson's that evening where we en- 
joyed the hospitality of their lovely home. In the morning, 
promptly at sunrise, the Turkish soldier with his horse ap- 
peared and gathering our fishlines we mounted our horses 
for a ride to the Sea of Galilee. 

With the Turkish soldier in the lead, his rifle strapped upon 
his back, our dragoman next, and your two humble servants 
in the rear, the cavalcade started at a little after sunrise. Our 
altitude, 2917 feet above sea level, is the highest point in the 
vicinity, and it is believed that Safed was meant when Jesus 
refers to a "city upon a hill whose light cannot be hid." We 
could see the Sea of Galilee, seemingly not far away, yet the 
distance is about eight miles. Our descent would take us to 
a point 652 feet below sea level. Down over the steepest of 
rocky trails, with large olive trees scattered over the mountain- 
sides, our course led us the first mile. 



EPHESUS, DAMASCUS AND PALESTINE. 175 

Many women were carrying water up into the city with 
large jugs poised on their heads. Shepherds were herding 
bands of goats on the mountainsides, and in every band there 
were several sheep. I have noticed this mixture all over Pal- 
estine, so suggestive of the separation mentioned, "And he 
shall set the sheep on his right hand but the goats on his left." 
(Matt. 25:33.) Now and then we would come to little val- 
leys, but most of the way is a continual descent. As we 
neared the lake, for over a mile black bugs in countless num- 
bers crawled all over the surface, several hundred on each 
square yard. In some places there was good farming land, 
the richest I ever saw, as black as coal. 

About ten o'clock we arrived at the lake shore at the very 
spot where the three apostles, Peter, Andrew and Philip, 
lived, and two of them were fishermen when they heard the 
call and "followed" Jesus. We were in Bethsaida,now called 
Tobcah. A German priest lives there, the Rev. Mr. Bremer, 
having built up a nice place on the shore of the lake, and, 
like a patriarch of old, has many people living about him, 
nearly all Arabs. The shore slopes beautifully and the beach 
is covered with pebbles, some large rocks scattered about. 
Here is the largest spring in Galilee, coming out of the ground 
a few hundred feet from the lake. The location, a curved 
shore line, forming a pretty bay, is between the two disputed 
sites of old Capernaum, Tell-Hum and the Plain of Genne- 
sareth. Up on a sloping hillside, not far from and in full 
view of the lake, is the place where the five thousand people 
were so miraculously fed. 

We told Mr. Bremer we wanted to catch some fish, having 
brought our lines from America, and asked him for a boat. 
He said, "I have no boat." We then asked if he could get 
one. He replied, "There is not a boat on the lake outside of 
Tiberius." He further said, "There is some deep water over 
there," pointing to some rocks on the shore towards Tell 
Hum. He sent one of his Arab servants to cut some cane- 
brake poles, gave us a piece of beef for bait, and after adjust- 



176 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

ing our lines, we started off, the proudest fishermen you ever 
saw. We were going to fish in the Sea of Galilee ! We had 
talked and almost dreamed about this fishing in California, 
and yesterday at Safed Dr. Wilson told us he had "seen the 
fish so thick in the Sea of Galilee as to lay in ridges on the 
water." 

The day was warm, and as I started off, walking briskly, 
with my coat cast aside, my step was as light and elastic, 
my hopes as buoyant and full of enthusiasm as any boy ever 
was. With nervous haste I baited the hook and cast the 
line. 

Like spiders' threads woven at night, 

To sparkle and gleam in the morning light, 

Were my expectations of delight, 

While I was waiting for the fish to bite. 

A grasshopper came jumping into sight; 
I caught him for bait ; oh, hope so bright ! 
While dreaming of the fish I wished to take 
I listened to the waves, as they did break. 

Not a fish did I get after all my toil, 
Not a fish did I see, except minnows so small; 
With sadness and silence I turned away; 
Perhaps you can catch these fish some day. 

I sat down, wrapped in meditation, while Elmer, divested 
of his clothes, swam away from the three foot depth of water 
at the shore, and fished while swimming, but without result. 
At one time, many centuries ago, there were four thousand 
boats on this lake, now only a very few, and all at Tiberius, 
the largest city in the world below sea level, having about 
seven thousand inhabitants. The place was in view across 
a portion of the lake, about four miles away; no life in sight, 
no boats flying about, silent and motionless-looking, almost 
like a charnel house of the dead, as an average of three per- 




OF GAL] 



EPHESUS, DAMASCUS AND PALESTINE. 177 

sons each hour were being swept away with the cholera. 

Galilee, according to Gibbons, the historian, had at one 
time 214 cities of fifteen thousand population each and over. 
Great areas of the richest land in the world are now lying 
idle, except a little grazing land, used mostly by the Bedouin 
Arabs, especially about this lake. Not many miles away are 
the mountains of Gadara, and at one place facing the lake 
were all the conditions necessary to fill the scriptural descrip- 
tion of the hogs running into the sea when the demons took 
possession of them. A goodly part of the Lord's ministry 
and teaching was about this lake, and mostly on and around 
this northern shore. 

We walked along the pebbly beach, we bathed in its limpid 
waters, and how we longed for some sort of a boat to "launch 
out into the deep." Not one in sight in any direction ! How 
my emotions were stirred as I gazed on the "blue Sea of 
Galilee," to me, because of association and real merit and 
beauty, the gem of all lakes I have ever seen, and it has 
been my privilege to see many lakes in many lands and 
climes. While looking about, our Turkish soldier came hunt- 
ing after us, and standing on a rock by the shore of the sea, 
partially disrobed, performed an ablution, and, facing Mecca, 
bowed his head to the rock several times successively, their 
way of prayer. What an anomalous scene ! One of the most 
certain places in the world where the Savior walked, talked 
and taught, yet another came to be an usurper. 

To me this last one of October days was full of echoes 
of the past, warming my heart, cheering my hopes and 
strengthening my faith, like the links of an endless revolving 
chain, continually bringing cups of charm, sweetness and love. 
Leaving this spot, the Bethsaida of Galilee, so called, as 
there was another Bethsaida north of the lake, but east ot 
the Jordan, called Bethsaida Julius, we walked over a ridge 
of rocky land and were on the east side of the Plain of 
Gennesareth. We walked along the beautiful seashore, 
picking up tricurated fresh water shells and many pebbles. 



178 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

Fringeing the shore are oleander trees in full tint of pink 
bloom. This plain is not large, not over three miles long and 
one mile wide, yet it is the richest spot of land in all the 
world. Josephus, the great Jewish historian, writes of this 
plain many centuries ago: "Its soil is so fruitful that every 
sort of tree can grow upon it — the seasons also seem to main- 
tain a generous rivalry, for the plain not only nourishes fruits 
of different climes, but the soil yields them at various times 
of the year, grapes and figs ripen continually for ten months 
and other fruits come in delightful confusion all the year 
round." 

The fruit trees are gone, yet we came to a large patch of 
wild blackberries. The vines were ten feet high in places, 
regular thickets. I picked and ate heartily of them. The de- 
clining sun and the long road up these rocky slopes compelled 
us to prepare to leave the most interesting part of our entire 
journey. Gladly, if possible, would we have lingered long on 
the shores of this wonderous lake, so far below the level of 
the sea. We will ever cherish this day as one of those rare 
days that come now and then into our lives, bringing thoughts 
fringed with glory, until our whole inner man is bathed in a 
-halo of radiance and rest. 



VI. 

traveling in Palestine. 



As rapidly as we could, yet reluctantly, we rode away from 
the Sea of Galilee towards Safed. Not far away to our right, 
about two miles from the lake, are the ruins of the old city 
of Chorazin. We did not have time to visit them. The woe 
pronounced against this city, together with Bethsaida and 
Caperanaum, are entirely true, as desolation reigns supreme 
and even their sites are questioned, especially Capernaum. 
We heard a lamb bleating on a mountain side and saw the 
shepherd searching for it. There are no trees near the lake 
growing wild except the cydr or thorn tree, which has the 
worst thorns I ever saw, a double one at every leaf, pointing 
two ways. It is believed that the crown of thorns Jesus 
wore came from this tree. All over Palestine we found small 
birds plentiful. The most common one, gray in color, is 
called the hoepee and sings a note about the way you would 
pronounce the bird's name. Mr. Bremer sent along with us 
and the soldier two Arabs and an ass, to purchase some sup- 
plies at Safed. At the foot of the steepest climb an armed 
cordon on each trail was stationed. At this camp we met 
a man who said, "I am sent by the governor of Safed with or- 
ders to let no one pass this cordon except yourselves and 
dragoman," addressing himself to me. The result was the two 
Arabs and the ass were turned back, not being allowed to 
enter Safed. As we were climbing this steep, narrow, slip- 
pery and rocky trail I looked back. The sun was setting over 
the hills and mountains of Galilee, lighting up the lands of 



180 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

Hauran and Moab east of the Jordan with fires of amber and 
gold, while the reflex of the sun's rays were painting colors 
in pink and violet over the blue waters of the beautiful Sea 
of Galilee. I reined in my horse and gazed in mute admira- 
tion upon the scene. I simply am taking this journey around 
the world to hunt out, to catch and feed upon all that is 
beautiful and inspiring on land and sea. 

As nature plays her perfect part, 
I find answering chords within my heart ; 
The charm's complete, the music is sweet, 
As I catch the tune when nature speaks. 

Up and through the funniest, narrowest stone-paved streets 
you ever saw, we threaded our way. Because we came from 
the direction of the sea the people were alarmed, being afraid 
of the cholera. One young Jewish lady cried out in fear 
of me, "Are you from Tiberiyeh?" Most of the population 
of Safed are Jews ; this, with Jerusalem, Hebron and Tiberius, 
being regarded as the four holy cities of Palestine. The 
Jews have a tradition that when the Messiah comes he will 
establish his throne at Safed. 

Within modern history the city was destroyed by an earth- 
quake in 1759, and again on January 1, 1837, over half of its 
population at that time were killed by an earthquake — about 
5,000 people. The Jews are of the poorest kind, filthy, super- 
stitious, bigoted and the most of them live on the charity of 
Europe. They clean out their rooms but once a week, just 
before their Sabbath, coming on Saturday, or rather begin- 
ning at sunset on Friday. After our supper, in company with 
Dr. Wilson and the Syrian English teacher, we again visited 
the governor in his home. As before, coffee was served — a 
mark of oriental hospitality. The governor was doubtful 
about our getting through to Jerusalem ; however, he prom- 
ised us a bill of health, and after a long consultation we de- 
cided to try. We hired a guide for Nazareth at ten francs 



TRAVELING IN PALESTINE. 181 

for the trip, and arranged to start early in the morning. An 
English lady missionary had just been quarantined ten days 
at Nazareth, arriving at Safed that evening. Early the next 
morning we started with our paper from the governor. Over 
and around mountains we plodded our way as we must avoid 
the village of Hattin on the direct trail. At times we would 
catch a glimpse of the Sea of Galilee. There is scarcely a 
bush or shrub near the larger cities in Palestine, as every- 
thing is taken for wood. There are no fruits scarcely except 
olives, figs, grapes and a few pomegranates. Meeting don- 
keys, camels and even women loaded with wood, sometimes 
going miles for it, is a feature of the trails as you leave a city 
like Safed. The roots of bushes, weeds and everything else »s 
taken to burn, until all about the cities, except the few fruit 
trees and the old olive trees, is at this season of the year one 
entire barren waste. 

Another peculiar feature of plant life is that nearly all the 
dry weather weeds," as we term them in California, are full 
of thorns, a part of the desolation on the land. There are 
rocks and rocks, until you are surprised when you find any 
spot clear of them. I have seen in many places grain being 
sown where the soil could scarcely be seen, the loose rocks 
were so thick. Then there are whole mountain sides where 
great ledges of rock run in regular courses across and around 
the slope. These courses will be a few feet across, then an- 
other one rises in the rear. The loose rock are piled in the 
front on the solid ledge and thus there are little strips of 
land to plow all over the country among the hills and moun- 
tains. Yet many hills are too rocky to get even these little 
strips of land, and are used for pasturage. We passed, just 
after noon, a village that had the cholera, guarded with sol- 
diers. We had to stop and show our paper from the governor 
of Safed before we were allowed to pass, yet we were one 
hundred yards away from the village. A man from the vil- 
lage came to communicate with the guard and to receive the 



182 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOB6. 

paper with a written message on it, the guard reached out 
his gun to take the paper on the end of the barrel. 

Nobody was traveling on the trails after we passed this 
village. We came to another, and with guns and clubs were 
halted; wanting to turn us back. We gave them the paper. 
They could not read it and the only way we could get by 
was to tell them in Arabic what the paper was, then to flour- 
ish it in their faces and spur our horses along. 

We came to the great plain of El Buttauf, where there are 
several thousand acres of rich, level land, most of it clear of 
stone. We crossed this plain and about four o'clock in the 
afternoon came to a village. I was in the lead and at that 
time I saw many men and boys in the trail ahead. As I came 
up to them many had rocks in their hands, and by the great 
uproar I understood I was ordered to stop. Had I taken 
another step I would have been knocked from the horse with 
rocks. I never before saw such savage fury. Even children 
were standing there ready to hurl rocks. The dragoman and 
guide came up. A group of men a little farther along had 
rifles. The paper was handed to them, yet it was only after 
a long and angry altercation that we were allowed to pro- 
ceed. As we did pass on several rocks were hurled after us 
and many imprecations. We avoided other villages, making 
detours around them. Everywhere, when halted, we had 
to produce our tezkerahs and the paper from the governor, 
accounted our animals and enumerated each of us. 

Not many miles west, as we looked over this beautiful plain 
of El Buttauf, is the port of Haiffa lying under the shadow 
of Mount Carmel. As the sun set in the west we saw not far 
to the left the village of Cana, where Jesus turned water into 
wine. — His first miracle. What a picture of rest and repose 
as we saw the shepherds taking home their flocks about this 
village, just as m the days of old. As the darkness gathered 
and the stars shone forth, the same ones you see twinkling in 
America, we came to a long avenue or trail bordered with 
large cactus, called "prickly pear" in Palestine. On and on 



TRAVELING IN PALESTINE. 183 

we spurred our weary horses, climbing up a mountain side 
over a rocky trail until just before we reached the mountain's 
crest we were stopped by an armed cordon. We were ordered 
into quarantine as on the other side of this mountain is the 
village of Nazareth. We were tired, weary and worn after 
twelve hours of continuous riding. 

As the tents and baggage reached us where we were ordered 
into quarantine, we had a little tea and some Arab bread. I 
was completely tired out as I crawled into our tent to sleep, 
with only a rug thrown on the rocky ground for a bed. I 
felt like a king, as weariness always invites restful sleep. 
The soldiers guarding us would not let out dragoman get 
any supplies that evening, therefore we had to go to bed almost 
supperless. As a cool breeze sprang up, beating a tattoo on 
the canvas of the tent, the associations clustering around 
Nazareth caught my mind and thought, all weariness stepped 
aside and I had an audience with the Creator of all things. One 
who dwelt so long, in human form, at Nazareth. 

Sunday morning came. I sent a little note by a messenger 
to Dr. Vartan, who has resided in Nazareth forty years, re- 
questing him to see the governor and ascertain why we were 
detained in quarantine. How uncongenial our surroundings 
were. Just a few feet away were the squad of soldiers 
guarding us and the trail. On the other side within a few 
feet was a tent filled with Arabs and their belongings, hav- 
ing been in quarantine several days. Every person coming 
along the trail was challenged, and as these oriental people 
talk very loud, there was a continuous babel of voices from 
some direction all the time. Dr. Vartan came to see us, riding 
on a horse. He had seen the governor and our quarantine 
would end at sunset, in the afternoon we would be fumi- 
gated and then set free. He gave us some good advice, say- 
ing: "These officials are very hungry and if you find it 
necessary to pay them something, begin very small as they 
will always want a good deal more than you offer." In the 
afternoon a fumigating machine arrived and it was turned 



184 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

loose on the Arabs and their luggage. We came to a con- 
clusion that the whole arrangement did not have power 
enough to kill a single scale if turned on a California orange 
tree. We simply laughed at the whole proceeding — a farce 
of the first degree. After the Arab camp was fumigated 
Arabic doctor who superintended the arrangement, came to 
our tent, looked in, stood silently eyeing us a few moments, 
then said in English. "You are free and may go." Thank- 
ing him, we gave orders to our dragoman to remove the tent 
into Nazareth, as we wanted to camp near the fountain the 
ensuing night. Giving a beshelick to the nearest soldier, we 
hastily departed as we heard them crying out for more money, 
knowing that we still had the officials to satisfy. Never did 
two mortals walk any prouder, because of freedom, than we 
did as we walked rapidly over the mountain's crest and down 
into the village of Nazareth. The afternoon's sun was warm, 
the air stifling, yet surrounded with sultry heat, our hearts and 
feeling were as elastic as lambs in the spring time. We had 
not walked far before we met the Arabic doctor. Addressing 
himself to me he said, "There is a charge of ten francs for 
inspection and discharge from quarantine." I thanked him 
. very courteously and gave him the one-half of a Napoleon 
that he demanded, remarking, "We will want a bill of health." 
He said," We will give you one in the morning." We passed 
a delightful evening at Dr. Vartan's home by invitation. He 
told us when he came to Nazareth forty years ago there was 
only one old building, which he believed to be about where 
the site of the synagogue was. We saw the place, and there 
is a steep rise back of it which is more than likely the place 
the enraged people sought to throw Jesus down, "headlong," 
but "passing through the midst of them he went his way." 
The site of the carpenter's shop, the great flat rock shown 
where it is claimed he and the apostles ate from, and the 
kitchen of the virgin did not interest us as we well know 
these so-called places possess no significance. The fountain 
where the only spring flows, and not over fifty yards from 




FOUNTAIN <>K THE VIRGIN 

IN NAZARETH 



TRAVELING IN PALESTINE. 185 

our camp, must have been about the same. I will never for- 
get the sights and scenes I saw at this fountain. Before sun- 
down I saw many women waiting to fill their jugs with 
water at the two places in a wall arched over where about a 
dozen women could stand at one time yet only two jugs at 
once could be filled from the small running streams, a few 
feet apart. Two men were there to keep these women from 
quarrelling about their turns to catch the water. The women 
fought, pulled hair and shouted at the top of their voices 
most of the time as they crowded around these two streams 
of water. I thought as I retired in the evening that soon the 
uproar would cease, but it continued all night without inter- 
ruption. The want of water was greater than the supply 
while the spring was at its lowest ebb just before the winter 
rains. I still hear the echo of those women's voices wrangling 
and quarreling over this water. After a sleepless night we 
arose just as the morning was breaking, having hired a little 
Greek boy for a guide, we climbed to the highest point of 
the mountain back of Nazareth. We arrived there before 
sunrise. There is no finer view in Palestine. Without doubt 
the "Prince of Peace" walked and played on the spot we were 
standing many times. While the little village of Nazareth 
was despised, hidden away in a little amphitheater among 
hills and clustered about this fountain behind a mountain's 
ridge on top, do you think that the youthful days or years 
of Christ's life were passed in some obscure corner of the 
world. We saw the sun rise directly over Mount Tabor, the 
only mountain in all Palestine, having a large rounded top like 
a dome. At the northwest beyond a continual rise in the 
mountains is Safed, and in the distance in the great Anti- 
Lebanon mountains grand old majestic dome-shaped Mount 
Hermon lifts up its lofty head. At our feet in the north is 
the beautiful plain of El Buttauf. On the west ,north and 
south of Mount Carmel, glistening in the morning sun, are 
the rolling waters of the Mediterranean, where in some mys- 
terious manner most of the greatest events in the world's his- 



186 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

tory have occurred on and about the shores of this wonderful 
sea. On the south, not far away, flanked in the distance by 
the mountains of Samaria, lies the greatest battlefield in the 
world, where the shock of contending armies have met with 
mighty force, strewing the great Plain of Esdraelon with its 
almost countless thousands of the dead. Out of this plain 
on the east are the peaks of Little Hermon and Mount Gilboa. 
At every point of the compass is either village, sea, mountain 
or plain, full of history, all of it connected with mighty events, 
most of them the greatest in the world. 

Each moment was full of precious thought 
As I lingered on this mountain top, 
An angel carried my message of love 
As I turned away, to the Savior above. 

There are times and places when no mind can grasp all of 
its surroundings. On this mountain top I found such a place, 
yet impulse and emotion lent their aid, and with one mighty 
effort every force within me threw this morning's picture on 
the fairest page of my memory. I have the picture yet, so fair 
and bright that I often draw it into the light. On our return 
from the mountain to Nazareth we were again ready to camp 
towards Jerusalem. 

We were, however, kept waiting in Nazareth until after 
8 130 a. m. before our bill of health was sent us from the gov- 
ernor's office. I gave the attendant who brought the paper 
two beshelicks for his fee. An English clergyman and two 
ladies had just passed through quarantine in Nazareth and it 
cost them twenty-six and one-half Napoleons ($106.) We 
think the English people's style and appearance had some- 
thing to do with the extra cost, besides we were learning ori- 
ental ways and the art of matching these officials with diplo- 
macy of their own sort. They were kept ten days. Our one 
day costing a little less than three dollars. Again we started 
from our camp at the fountain with our faces towards Je- 



TRAVELING IN PALESTINE. 187 

rusalem. A warm, sultry morning with just a little wind 
blowing from the East. After about two miles on a descend- 
ing, rocky trail we came to the famous Plain of Esdraelon, 
most of it entirely free from rock or stone. Not a tree in 
sight except one or two on the northern edge. No fruit 
trees or crops of any kind as this particular time of the year 
is at the close of the dry season, as in California. The soil 
is heavy and in many places there were large fissures or cracks 
in the ground, caused by dry weather. While riding ahead of 
our party I was much startled as I saw a serpent about four 
feet long, as black as ebony, a few yards away, coming to- 
wards me at a terrific pace, gliding along with a convolvular 
motion. As I was turning my horse to gallop away the ser- 
pent ran into a fissure of the earth. We came to a field 
where the wild gourd vines, similar in leaf to watermelons, 
occupied the ground, having fruit on entirely unlike the Cali- 
fornia kind, about the size of plums. In different directions 
were trains of camels plodding along, just the same as in the 
days of the patriarchs. On the edge of one village we passed 
there was a decided modern innovation, a pumping plant to 
obtain water for herds of stock. We came to another village ; 
cholera, like a grim specter, was stalking about — no activity, 
no children playing around, houses looking vacant, almost 
lifeless, yet the people were there, simply waiting with oriental 
stoicism to see if "it was written." Just by the trail a woman 
was drawing water from a well, another woman was taking 
the water to this village in a goat skin lying on a donkey's 
back, driving the donkey and carrying a jug full on her head. 
Another woman was coming from toward the mountains of 
Samaria, about four miles away, with a load of wood on her 
head for fuel. A strange people and a strange life. There 
was nothing unusual about the day, only commonplace, yet 
the birds were flitting about and warbling bits of song, little 
whirlwinds of dust were floating lazily by and out by the 
wayside ,hidden away somewhere, the song of the locust was 
"heard in the land," usually present in a time of sultry sum- 



188 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

mer heat. Little flecks of fleecy clouds were poised in the air, 
not knowing which way to go in this soft summer breeze 
while up and down the landscape the heated air gathered itself 
into undulating and tremulous lines, finer than threads of 
gossamer, encompassing hill, mountain and plain with charm, 
warmth and color. I have purposely refrained from weaving 
into this bit of an every-day picture anything of its wonderful 
surroundings, history or association for the purpose of an- 
alogy. I doubt if these cholera-stricken Arab people ever 
caught much of these pictures about them, only commonplace, 
yet what lifting power when applied to any person's life. 
Aside from spiritual teaching the charm of Bible history is its 
contact with, and intimate knowledge of nature. Would you 
climb, then weave out of the web of nature all about you a 
chain of love long enough to reach the farthest star, throw 
it over, catch the ends and swing out into space. With Mount 
Tabor not far away as we rode over the Plain of Esdraelon, 
rising as it does right out of an edge of the plain, and Little 
Hermon's range out of the center and Mount Gilboa on the 
south edge all near together making an impressive view. On 
the north side of Little Hermon, facing Mount Tabor, is the 
village of Endor, where Saul went over one night, eight miles 
away from Mount Bilboa, to consul*- a witch the last night 
of his life on earth. The village of Shunem was not far 
away where the army moving against Saul was stationed. Not 
far from this village of Endor is the village of Nain where 
Jesus first proved that "I am the resurrection and the life" 
by raising a young man from the dead. 

Between Mount Gilboa and Little Hermon is the most fa- 
mous village of them all and situated on a small rounded hill 
springing up from the plain — the village of Jezreel. In the 
time of Ahab it had a "palace of ivory" and mansions so 
fine as to be called "houses of ivory." Here was Naboth's vine- 
yard and not far away the spring that Gideon's soldiers drank 
from by taking the water up in the palm of their hands. When 
we read of chariots being used in battle in the Bible then they 



TRAVELING IN PALESTINE. 189 

are connected with some great plain, as in most of the country, 
chariots could not have been used. There is no other valley 
in Palestine where so many great events in Bible history have 
occurred as on this great Plain of Esdraelon. 

All day we were in sight of Mount Carmel, which is a 
ridge about fifteen miles long on top, not a peaked mountain 
as its name would imply. When heavy rains occur the drain- 
age of this valley is considerable, forming the river Kishon. 
Not far from Mount Carmel are two mountain peaks close to- 
gether which are famous as the place where the contest be- 
tween the priests of Baal and Elijah took place. Then after- 
ward all these false priests and prophets were taken down 
where the torrent of Kishon runs and they were slain. Over 
this very plain and crossing our trail somewhere, Elijah ran 
before the king's chariot to Jezreel the night his servant saw 
the clouds gathering, for a great storm arose in answer to 
prayer. Elisha one time, in company with the Shuna- 
mite woman, passed over this trail and in answer to faith 
her dead son was restored to life. We were wonderfully in- 
terested in all these places. As I looked out towards the 
mouth of this annual river Kishon, I remembered the words 
of prophecy that Christ uttered, "There shall be false Christs." 
After sailing from Brindisi in Italy we found on every 
steamer people who admitted they were interested in the 
claims of Abbi Effendi at Acre, near the mouth of this river 
of Kishon. This so-called Christ has many followers about 
Washington and Baltimore in America, as well as elsewhere. 
The word "Effendi" in this country is simply a title applied 
and used by educated gentlemen. This man's father claimed 
to be Christ and many people believed him. He received much 
money, large sums coming from Persia, and was not seen 
much except at times the poorest of the people got a glimpse 
of his back. He died, leaving three sons. The present "Ef- 
fendi" got the money, "bagged the divinity," and not long ago 
was summoned in court as a witness in a case of robbery in 
his own house. He was asked who he was. The answer 
came, "I am neither a carpenter nor a camel driver, I will 



190 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

answer tomorrow." Tomorrow never came. He used money 
to keep out of court. Just before sundown we reached our 
camping place on the edge of this plain, the old place of En- 
Gannim, now called Jenin. 

As we camped at Jenin in the evening the officials came and 
examined our papers, and to encourage good feeling we en- 
gaged two soldiers to stand guard over the camp during the 
night. They have some water for irrigation, and in the village 
are some fine gardens with large date palms scattered through 
them, also some very large fig trees. At or near this place, as 
it is on the direct road to Samaria, is where Jesus healed 
the ten lepers and only one came back. This village, the old 
En-Gannim, belonged to the tribe of Issachar. Beautiful for 
location, and where the water ran the soil was burdened with 
its wonderful growth of fruit trees and gardens. We heard 
the cry of jackals all about our camp during the night. We 
paid the soldiers one franc each this morning; they, as usual, 
wanted additional pay. Their ways do not surprise us any 
more. Again taking to the saddle, we soon saw at the right 
the Plain of Dothan, the prettiest small valley yet seen in 
Palestine. Many handsome song-birds were flying about, and 
on the borders of this valley were some handsome olive or- 
chards. It is believed Joseph was sold by his brethren on 
this Plain of Dothan. As we entered Samaria I noticed the 
dew or water still clinging to some of the rocks. I do not 
know the reason. Only one kind, a gray looking rock, pre- 
sented this peculiar feature so late in the morning. As we 
passed a high ridge we again saw Mount Carmel and Naza- 
reth in the distance, our last view of these wonderful places. 
In the villages we were passing the people keep their supply 
of fuel, either wood, brush or weeds, on the top of their 
houses. Samaria is a handsome country, beautifully rounded 
hills and nooks of valleys as pretty as the sun ever shone 
upon. 

We did not go around by the site of its old and famous 
capital, taking the direct route to the old city of Shechem. 
These were wonderful days to me. My only regret being 



TRAVELING IN PALESTINE. 191 

that the time was too short. I was so absorbed in thought, 
history and association that I ate but little. Each day was 
crowned with a necklace of jewels more lustrous than the 
one preceding it. A tiara brighter than any king ever wore. 

As we climbed intervening ridges the dome-shaped top of 
Mount Tabor was still in view, as beautiful in shape and as 
impressive in situation and looks as it ever was in the "olden 
days." About noon clouds and rifts of sunshine kept alter- 
nating each other, lending additional lustre and charm to a 
pleasing landscape. 

The village people were gathering olives, a much better 
crop on an average than in Italy. Most of them had no lad- 
ders ; knocking them off with poles. Little bits of ground was 
being plowed between the rocks on the hillsides, with the 
smallest of oxen. By the side of each village are their thresh- 
ing floors, and quite often you meet or pass caravans of camels 
moving in rigid lines, as camels seem to get their eyes fixed 
on some distant object and never deviate from their course. 
Towards evening we entered a road fitted up for carriages 
coming from Haiffa. Entering this road, bordered with gar- 
dens and fruit trees, we soon came to Shechem, the place 
where Abraham built an altar, the first one in the Promised 
land, as related in the twelfth chapter of Genesis. 

Jacob bought a "parcel of a field," dug a well on the land, 
reared an altar, living here many years. He gave this land 
to Joseph and years afterwards, the Israelites buried Joseph 
here on this same land. (Josh. 24-32.) 

While our supper and tent were being prepared, hiring a boy 
for guide, we drove on through the streets of Shechem to 
Jacob's Well. We were in a mountain valley, and to the left — 
looking to the east is Mount Ebal, and to the right, Gerizim. 
The well is nearly a mile east of the present village, which is 
directly between these two noted mountains. At and around 
the well the ground all slopes towards the Jordan. Where 
the village has the drainage is towarii the Mediterranean. 

Iasiah speaks of the fatness of these valleys, the beauty of 
their flowers, and this valley and surroundings was known as 



192 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

"Delightsome Land." Knocking at the entrance of an en- 
closure, where the well is located, the door was opened. To 
get to the well we were guided by an aged patriarchial look- 
ing man to the rear of the enclosure and down a few steps 
of stone. At or about the fifth century a church was built 
over this well. Now, all is gone except some broken pillars. 
Unlocking another entrance we saw the well, with its old curb 
stones, having a circular entrance just about large enough for 
a man to squeeze through, or to pull out a goat skin full of 
water. Below the opening the well is about seven feet in 
diameter and seventynfive feet deep. In the early part of the 
last century the well was 105 feet deep. Nobody knows how 
the difference was filled in. There was no water there when 
we saw it, being just at the close of the dry season. I sat 
down on the opening curb stones, gray, and polished smooth 
with use, besides being well worn. One day Jesus came to 
this well on his way from Judea to Galilee. He came "about 
the sixth hour" or about the middle of the day. Farther west 
this valley has eight fine living springs of water. He came 
from the east up a steeply ascending slope where there is no 
water. He had reached the little city of Sychar, an outlying 
settlement from Shechem. Coming up this steep mountain 
slope, in the heat of the day, over these dusty trails, he was 
weary, warm, worn and tired. He sat on the well, resting. 
He was thirsty. A woman came to draw water. On her head 
was an empty earthen water pot or jar, standing alone. Her 
motion in walking kept the jar in position. In one of her 
hands or coiled up on her arm, was a piece of home spun 
rope, a little more than one hundred feet long, as the well 
was deep. This is a true picture. I have seen hundreds of 
women going after water, to a well, on this trip through Pales.- 
tine in the same way. You know the rest of the story, how 
he tarried two days where many Samaritans saw Jesus. It is 
a beautiful experience to meet Jesus and know that it is He. 
The woman was so interested that she forgot all about the 
need for water at her home, left the water pot at the well and 
went back without any water, telling every man she saw, 



TRAVELING IN PALESTINE. 193 

"Come — is not this the Christ?" We are camping towards the 
place where Jesus flew off to Heaven. Yet he sent another 
messenger, the "Comforter," to take his place. He put his 
Spirit and presence with this messenger. He sits on your 
door step, rings you up by telephone (your conscience), is 
weary, warm, worn and tired. He is thirsty and wants a drink 
of water, and in exchange will give you "living water." 

In the early twilight we rode back to the village now called 
Nablous, with several thousand population, beautiful in its 
situation, once the capital of Israel. We retired early as we 
concluded to climb Mount Gerizim in the morning and also 
look about Nablous. Again we hired a soldier to guard the 
camp, as we found it the easiest and cheapest way to please 
the Turkish officials. 

At daylight in the morning we started to climb Mount 
Gerizim. We commenced the ascent on the west, passing 
around the edge of the village. Abandoning the trail, we made 
a direct ascent, through an olive orchard at first, then over 
rocks. The olive trees in this valley have mistletoe hanging 
on them. I have seen none elsewhere in Palestine. We saw 
several foxes as they ran for cover in and under the rocky 
ledges. 

On one of these natural standing places overlooking the val- 
ley and village the first parable ever spoken was uttered by 
Jotham, really a fable, about trees electing a king to rule over 
them. A bramble bush was selected typical of the ruler over 
Israel, the reigning Abimelech. It is a good thing to "read be- 
tween the lines" and understand parables or fables as we find 
them today. 

The higher mountain of Ebal, opposite us, a few hundred 
yards away, was covered on most of its slopes with cactus, 
called "prickly pear." There is much of this large cactus all 
over Palestine, yet there was none there in Bible times. The 
first of it was brought into the country by the Spaniards in 
about the sixteenth century. There is a natural ampitheatre 
between these two mountains, where, as Bible history tells 
us, curses were pronounced upon Israel from Mount Ebal, 



194 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

and blessings from the mountain we were climbing. We 
could hear people talking down in the valley below, thus prov- 
ing to us how all Israel heard both curses and the blessings. It 
must have been a remarkable scene, as we stood and pictured 
out the position of the people on that memorable occasion. 

We came to the ruins of a great temple erected by Sanballat, 
king of Samaria, about 450 B. C, where temple worship was 
carried on similar to its mode of service at Jerusalem. Some 
of the courses of the stones and most of the foundations are 
still there, of large area, and it must have been an imposing 
temple. There is a little square stone building in the temple 
enclosure where a sacrifice of lambs and the feast of the 
passover is kept up — the only place in the world — once a year. 
Seven white lambs are offered up for sacrifice each spring at 
the time of the paschal moon. 

As we came down the mountain we visited their synagogue. 
The Samaritan high priest took us into their house of wor- 
ship — a fine, intelligent looking man. There are five locks on the 
stout wooden door. The last key he used is fully one foot in 
length. Very large keys are still used all over Palestine, a 
surprise at every turn. There are only about a hundred peo- 
ple keeping up this old form of Jewish worship. As we en- 
tered, the carpet was thrown back a few paces from the en- 
trance and we were requested not to step farther than the 
bare space. We wanted to see their old copies of the law 
written on parchment. With our shoes taken off I presume 
we could have walked on the carpet. There are no windows 
in the little synagogue, just two apertures in the ceiling, and 
even these are securely vaulted. Hanging across a recess in 
the wall towards Mount Gerizim, their "holy mount," is a cur- 
tain of white linen, then green and purple is worked on it, the 
whole being very rich and handsome and forming the veil, as 
inside is the "holy of holies." No one but the priest is al- 
lowed to enter this place. We were shown three sets of 
manuscript, one written by Ahisha, the great-grandson of 
Aaron. The priest reached behind the veil to get these rare 
manuscripts. These people use nothing but the books of the 



TRAVELING IN PALESTINE. 195 

law in their worship. The oldest parchment was wrapped in- 
side of a silver looking case, and we were wonderfully inter- 
ested in it, as it is believed by experts to be the oldest manu- 
script written on parchment in the world, dating from the third 
century at least. Once a year all their people are allowed to 
kiss a portion of this old parchment where the blessings are 
written. The construction of the case holding this parchment, 
the engraved figures of the ark of the covenant, candlesticks 
and various instruments used in their sacrificial service, with 
all the surroundings so strange to us, mementos of the past, 
engaged our attention in a remarkable way. No wonder they 
had five locks, including two padlocks, on the door. Many 
wonderful things we were seeing in our wanderings over land 
and sea. Events crowd each other so rapid, their swing is so 
mighty and reaches so far into the past that I am amazed 
every day as we pass them on the way. A mine of thought 
each one reveals ; a treasure house until now concealed. Is 
my span of life to last until all this treasure is within my 
grasp ? 

Remounting our horses we rode rapidly away as the mule- 
teers with tents and luggage had preceded us at an early hour. 
As we passed Jacob's well we saw a tomb not far away, said 
to be Joseph's, but we doubt if the spot of his burial is known. 
As we turned towards the south, the beautiful plain and the 
curved hills stretching away east and south of the well are in 
many respects the choicest bits of scenery in all of Palestine. 
Contour, change, color and sweep of vision, until beyond the 
Jordan where the mountains of Moab and Gilead filled out the 
picture, was the view that Jacob and his sons saw. The 
sun, as we rode along, only peeped at us now and then ; birds 
were singing notes of glee, and just on the rocky hard spots 
of the trail were patches of that beautiful pink flower, the 
autumn crocus— one of the loveliest flowers that ever looked 
at the sun, standing all alone on its stalk with not a leaf in 
sight. The saffron that in the Song of Solomon (4:14) he 
sang about is obtained by pressing the petal-like stigmas of 
this flower and drying them. We passed three lepers begging 



196 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

by the wayside, poor, pitiful, hopeless-looking men. Valleys, 
villages and hills looked at us as we passed on towards Jeru- 
salem. Each hour gave us delight as something new caught 
the eye. At 2 o'clock p. m. off a rounded hill, with only 
One small building and some ruins in view, to the east of 
our trail, was the site of historic Shiloh. The tent built by 
Moses in the desert, called the Tabernacle, found a resting 
place at Shiloh. It was a city with a wonderful history. 
This tabernacle remained in Shiloh during the entire period 
of the Judges. Great annual gatherings here occurred and 
dances were held. The little valley surrounding the hill of 
Shiloh was this place of gathering, with adjacent hills of 
the right height to hold thousands of people as they looked 
on. Every Bible story about this land has conditions of 
hill and valley about the story that exactly fits the place 
and the way the tale is told. 

After passing Shiloh the trail led us for several miles 
down a narrow, rocky valley, some of the time through 
groves of large olive trees, then over a trail, still descend- 
ing, of nothing but rocks. Yet up on the mountain slopes, 
on little terraces, between ledges and huge piles of loose 
rock, were Arab farmers, plowing with their teams of small 
oxen, and some of them had cows yoked together. 

We passed the usual camping place sometime before sun- 
down, and the dragoman wanted to camp; we told 
him "No" we were going to camp at Bethel. At sun- 
down Bethel was not in sight, neither did the dragoman or 
the muleteers know just where to find Bethel, only we knew 
we were on a trail leading in that direction. We took the 
lead, now on an ascending trail around and over the rocks. 
On and on until the twilight entirely faded away, and still 
no appearance of Bethel or any other village. In the after- 
noon on the right we had passed Gilgal — the one mentioned 
so often in connection with the prophet Elijah. There are 
five ancient places called Gilgal in Palestine, therefore in 
studying Bible history we have to be careful to know which 
one the narrative records, or we may be mystified in trac- 



TRAVELING IN PALESTINE. 197 

ing events and places. With only a few stars to light us 
on the way, as clouds were gathering in the sky, we plodded 
on still in the lead. We began to think we were obstinate 
in pushing on to Bethel. We missed the trail, wandering 
along among the rocks, with no sound except the footfalls 
of the five hors*« and the ass, with jackals crying out in 
shrill voices on the rocky hill sides. In the distance a dog 
commenced barking, giving us a clue as to the direction; 
which proved to be the little village of Beitin, the Bethel of 
Bible history. We retired as soon as a camping place could 
be found, very tired, yet we had plans to carry out in the 
morning. 

As I walked out of the tent in the morning, I was sur- 
prised to see an ancient reservoir said to be three hundred 
feet one way and two hundred the other; now used as a 
threshing floor by this little village of poor people. On a 
hill near by are the ruins of an old tower and old founda- 
tions of ancient buildings. The name of the place on the 
early pages of history was Luz. One day along the same 
rocky trail we were traveling over — that has been traveled 
on for thousands of years — Jacob was traveling, tortured 
in mind, fleeing away from a brother he had wronged, and 
as with us, darkness overtook him, and with the ground 
for a bed, a stone for a pillow, and the skies for a covering, 
he laid down to sleep. The unexpected happened, as it 
often does in everybody's life, and instead of a deep restful 
sleep, he dreamed a dream ; you know what it was — a lad- 
der, the longest one ever seen, and angels walking up and 
down the ladder. He was scared. Just as you and I have 
seen people living in America, after they had a dream and 
connected it with some dreadful omen. You know the rest 
of the story, how he became afraid and, like everybody else, 
who is afraid, got up very early in the morning. It is a 
beautiful story. Hunt it up and read it and get the sequel, 
where it tells why this village was called Bethel. 

While eating breakfast, the women of the village came 
to the spring, near the bottom of the reservoir, after water, 



198 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLNG THE GLOBE. 

to the same spring and in the same way as thousands of 
years ago. Our prepared plan now came to fruition. We 
walked nearly two miles directly east towards the old city of 
Ai. We climbed the eminence where Abraham and Lot 
agreed to part A beautiful view, especally toward the Jor- 
dan and the Dead Sea, All the Jordan valley near the Dead 
Sea, "well watered" and beautiful sloping hills leading to 
this valley, were at the east and southeast. No wonder Lot 
"pitched ibis tent toward Sodom." Abraham gave Lot his 
choice as they stood on the hill we were standing on and 
looked at the country. It was a beautiful arrangement, no 
more quarreling among the herdsmen. Lot, of course, went 
home and told his wife how good the Lord was to him 
and his household, and I have no doubt that Lot's wife 
went singing about the tent and that night dreamed beau- 
tiful dreams— little dreaming of the sad, direful fate await- 
ing her. Read the interesting story, and that description of 
how the country looked to Lot is equally as good today as 
we were standing on the spot. You will also notice that 
years before, Abraham erected an altar on this eminence to 
the Lord. We here saw our first glimpse of Jerusalem 
and the tall, white Russian tower on Mount Olivet. Emo- 
tions resemble the great sea, sometimes passively quiet, then 
again heaving with a tremendous throb. Force always pre- 
cedes action, and at the moment I saw Jerusalem and Mount 
Olivet, a singular force, irresistible and uncontrollable, took 
possession of every fibre of my being. We returned to camp 
and again for the last day rode toward Jerusalem. Good 
trails, villages quite numerous, and more tillable land was 
about us than farther north; feed for cattle very scarce; 
as I saw one Arab up in a fig tree pulling the leaves off to 
feed two cattle below. We were much interested in our 
approach to Jerusalem, watching from every ridge and hill 
its nearing panorama. We came to a nice carriage road, 
and it seemed strange to ride along this road after riding 
two hundred miles without roads — just trails across the coun- 
try. As we came to Mount Scopus, the mountain facing 



TRAVELING IN PALESTINE. 199 

Jerusalem, about a mile away toward the north, we sat 
down to eat our lunch. Here is where Titus camped and 
all the besieging armies that ever encompassed Jerusalem, 
as this is the only approachable side outside of the walled 
city. I was surprised to see so many large and good look- 
ing buildings, especially north of the walled city, where 
there is plenty of room to grow. Rapidly we scanned from the 
distance every feature of interest we could see, and mount- 
ing again for the last time, we rode forward, proceeding to 
the Olivet House, not far from the Jaffa gate, where all 
the hotels are. People were surprised to see us coming in 
from Damascus, as after the cholera started on the route 
we were the only ones able to get through. The trip was 
finished. Sixteen days we stayed in and about Jerusalem, 
camping "down to Jericho" out of Gibeon, Mizpeh, Bethle- 
hem and Solomon's Pools, then to Jaffa and Egypt. 

As our room was in full view of Mount Olivet and New 
Calvary, we saw the sun rise several mornings, and with 
much interest, expectation and thought I watched the morn- 
ing light as it would gather and culminate as the sun ap- 
peared over the crest of historic Olivet. During these six- 
teen days it rained about five inches in Jerusalem, and at 
times the weather was chilly and cold. Some sharp light- 
ning and heavy peals of thunder occurred, sounding to me 
like echoes coming down from the past. Jerusalem ! How 
magical the name, and how elastic my footsteps were as I 
started out to see the city. All the hotels are near the Jaffa 
gate, and there are many large, fine looking buildings on the 
north of the walled city, and outside of the walls much 
building is being done. An exceptional city, the central one 
of Bible history and prophecy, destined to yet play an im- 
portant part in this old world's history, even as in the past. 
Tremendous events have occurred here, greater than any 
battefield ever recorded in the annals of history. Human 
life is full of tragedy everywhere, yet in depth and force 
tragedy had its full play in and about this city ; fringed 



200 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

with pathos, tenderness and love, as never seen on earth be- 
fore or since our Saviour's crucifixion and resurrection. 

I entered the walled city full of Oriental life and char- 
acter. There are many old gray haired men, mostly Jews. They 
come to Jerusalem to die, as they want to be buried on 
the slopes of Mount Olivet, as almost the entire side of 
this mountain facing Jerusalem is one vast Jewish 
cemetery, of nearly all flat tombstones. I saw them inter- 
ring their dead there several times. By appearance the 
ground in the many centuries of time that has elapsed has 
been buried over and over. 

Many Jews wear curls, training their hair that way. This 
mark is said to be a sign that they belong to the tribe of 
Judah. There are priests everywhere of all kinds— Greek, 
Latin, Jesuit, Maronite, Abyssinian, Coptic, Armenian and 
friars dressed in brown, all wearing keys and priestly robes, 
causing one to wonder why they are all there. 

Donkeys, loaded with almost everything one can think of, 
jostle you at every step as you tread along in the little nar- 
row streets and bazaars. A curious lot of people from every 
clime and country, except the far eastern ones of India and 
China and those surrounding them. Arabs with their cloaks 
on (Abbas), Jews wearing long cloaks, flowing robes of 
all colors, pass and repass you until this ever-changing ka- 
leidoscope of color and character impress you as nothing 
ever does in Occidental lands. The city has been destroyed 
six times and many feet beneath its present streets are the 
foundation stones of ancient Jerusalem. I saw the grain mer- 
chants selling grain. The purchaser pressed the grain down, 
shook it and heaped the measure until not another kernel could 
be heaped on, just as in Bible times, taking many minutes of 
time to measure enough to fill a sack. All the wood mer- 
chants sell wood by weight and buy it the same way. We 
walked to the wailing place of the Jews, outside of the 
supposed original wall of the temple enclosure, yet inside 
of the city. Here in their quaint costumes they recite their 
prayers, and with a continual swaying back and forth bewail 




DONKEY AND OX PLOWING 

JUST OUTSIDK THK WALLS OK JERUSALEM 



TRAVELING IN PALESTINE. 201 

the desolation that has overtaken the land, yet according to 
prophecy. Some are there at all times, and several hundred 
each Friday at sunset, when their Sabbath commences. 

Most of the many thousands of Jews in Jerusalem are very 
poor and live in such filthy houses and quarters as to be 
almost beyond descriptioni No one except a Mohammedan 
is allowed to enter the temple enclosure without a permit 
which has to be purchased at a megida (90 cents) each and an 
attendant and a soldier are required to accompany you. 
Before knowing this we were walking near one of the 
gates of the enclosure one day, and after watching many 
women as they filled and carried away jugs of water 
as it came into a little basin from Solomon's pools, we saw 
an open gate and started to walk in. Several Mohammedans 
sprang at us, one of them brandishing a club, and we were 
ordered back very peremptorily, I believe if we had taken 
another step forward we would have been knocked down. 
After this, with our purchased permits, we visited the en- 
closure, the old site of Solomon's temple and the grounds, 
in all about thirty-five acres. The famous rounded dome of 
the Mosque of Omar is built over the rock that David pur- 
chased as a threshing floor, and is believed to be the very 
spot where Abraham reared an altar for the sacrifice of his 
only son. No one is allowed to touch the large rock, it 
being fenced in. The top of the rock was much disfigured 
by the Crusaders, who covered some of it with marble, now 
taken away. 

This rock, about fifty feet in diameter, and stands about 
six feet high, is known to the Jewish people as the Sakara, 
or "Stone of Foundation," and they have a legend that this 
rock is the world's center, and around which the world 
was formed. We descended a staircase which leads to a 
cavern under the rock, where it is said Mohammed prayed 
and ascended to heaven from this cavern. If the Talmudic 
account of the temple that Solomon built is correct, then 
the center of this rock was the center of the "Holy of 
Holies" and the Ark of the Covenant rested there. Next to 



202 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

Mecca this is the great sacred spot of the Mahommedans, 
and of course all our shoes had to be removed as we walked 
about. Most of the thirty-five acres are covered with pave- 
ments, and underneath are Solomon's stables, to which we 
descended, and also the quarries where the stone to con- 
struct the temple was obtained. Large pillars of original 
rock still stand to support the surface above, and one may 
wander for hours in these great subterranean chambers. 

My heart was strangely stirred as I looked around on this 
spot where the Savior taught the people and performed mir- 
acles. Here those beautiful poetic psalms of David were 
first sung, so grand and touching that many human hearts 
are humming them over today, warming their hearts as 
nothing but the divine word can. It was here that for many 
centuries, and nowhere else on the earth, God manifested 
himself in the Shecbinah to his people. 

How beautiful to let our souls expand and grow, 
Especially if our hearts are responsive too. 
These seasons are within the reach of all, 
The only condition is to hear the Savior's call. 
One of the benefits of travel is to get above commonplace 
things around you, and catch as the occasion may offer, 
something of the wonderful wealth all about us. Many 
Moslems were reading their Korans in the larger mosque on 
the grounds and others were engaged in apparently zealous 
devotions. At all the stated hours of prayer in all the large 
mosques, a man will ascend to the top of the minaret just be- 
fore the time and call the people to prayer. Usually he sings 
out his call in a loud voice, recounting the goodness of God 
and sometimes the greatness of his prophet Mohammed. 
As I passed out of these wonderful sacred and historic 
grounds, there came to me this thought, speaking it almost 
in an audible voice: "This has been one of the greatest days 
of my life." 

Everybody visiting Jerusalem takes a trip "down to Jeri- 
cho." There is a carriage road in good condition curving 
on a grade as it descends through the "wilderness of Judea." 



TRAVELING IN PALESTINE. 203 

Most people are made to believe that the road is infested with 
robbers. It undoubtedly is if you do not pay money to the 
Turkish government for protection. If you travel otherwise 
you will be robbed. Our dragoman paid for a guard. We 
never saw him only at the "Good Samaritan" inn. With a 
dragoman and driver one fine morning we started from 
near the Jaffa gate for Jericho. We passed along to the east, 
north of the walled city, near the Damascus gate and down 
across the Kedron valley by the Garden of Gethsemane. 
Birds were singing, and after the rain of a few days pre- 
vious, green grass was beginning to grow, and the lovely 
orocus flower was still peering at us from the roadside, full 
of sweetness and color. On the northern slopes of Olivet and 
in and about the Kedron valley, the Arab farmers were plow- 
ing the small patches of land, with the poorest and smallest 
of oxen. 

Passing close to the tomb of Absalom, the most conspicuous 
object in the valley, cut out of the original rock, twenty feet 
above the rubbish at its base and about the same size on each 
side. Above this is a circular body of hewn stone surmounted 
by a small dome and spire. It looks very old and many Jews 
pelt it with stones in passing. We then pass through the 
great Jewish cemetery, winding along and around the slopes 
of Olivet, until we come to the village of Bethany, about a 
mile from the summit of Olivet. This village of thirty or 
forty flat-roofed houses has a beautiful secluded situation. I 
declined entering the house of Lazarus and his reputed tomb, 
as they looked too modern. 

The location of this village in such a quiet, restful spot was 
its charm for Jesus, as here he seemed to have a home. The 
inhabitants are great beggars and are wretchedly poor. With 
a rapid descent we soon came to the "Well of the Apostles," 
so called as it is the only spring for miles on this route and 
is always a resting place. Not a tree or bush on any of 
these mountains, affording scanty pasturage to a few goats, 
and their herdsmen are the only inhabitants as there are no 
villages on the entire road after leaving Bethany. There is 



204 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

much travel, as the people of a large area of country in Moab 
east of the Jordan all use this road to Jerusalem. Parties 
usually were armed, rifles strung on their backs, and as we 
continually met these Oriental people in all kinds of costumes, 
some on foot, others riding asses, camels and horses, and driv- 
ing their pack animals, we soon learned by their dress and 
appearance the part of the country they came from. About 
half way down we came to the "Good Samaritan" inn, where 
the man that fell among thieves was cared for. Soon after at 
our left we saw the brook Cherith, where Elijah lived in a 
cave and was fed by ravens. 

A little farther along is the Mount of Temptation, overlook- 
ing the Jordan valley. It is a steep, almost inaccessible 
peak, a little higher than the surrounding mountains, and 
tradition marks it as the spot of Christ's temptation for forty 
days. A more lonely spot cannot be imagined and nothing 
in all the world more desolate. As we emerged from the 
mountains out into the valley of the Jordan we were not far 
from the ancient site of Jericho, the subject of such a remark- 
able Bible story. We drove directly down the valley about ten 
miles to the Dead Sea, the lowest spot beneath the level of 
the sea in the world (1292 feet). For the first time in my 
life I went in swimming and I could not sink. All I had to 
do was to keep my head up and I could propel myself or float 
like a cork anywhere. Not a fish can live in its waters, and 
on the shore were many dead fish all pickled in salt, and dry 
as they lay up on the bank several feet above the water's 
edge, evidently brought down into the sea by the river Jor- 
dan in the last winter floods and cast up on the shore. We 
were about two miles from the place where the Jordan entered 
the sea. Some drift wood but not a living green plant was 
on or near the shore. No village in sight except Jericho, 
ten miles away. 

Toward the south on the right the mountains come close 
to the sea, bare, precipitous and desolate. Just east of us was 
Mount Pisgah, where Moses surveyed the land but was not 
allowed to enter. As far as we could see north and south 



TRAVELING IN PALESTINE. 205 

of the mount where Moses stood was a uniform and almost 
unbroken range of mountains. Yet back of these mountains 
there is a fairly level and fertile country. 

We again climbed into our carriage and drove a few miles 
away to one of the noted fords of the Jordan, the place where 
thousands of Pilgrims, mostly Russians, are baptized each 
Easter day. We ate our lunch there in the shade of some 
trees and as we looked at this muddy Jordan river running 
along, of considerable volume of water, and then remembered 
how clear the rivers of Damascus looked, we did not wonder 
at what Naaman, the leper, said as the Bible story tells us. 

We were not far from where the Israelites crossed this 
river on dry land into the "promised land" — the most mys- 
terious river in the world. Its sources are unlike other rivers, 
and its discharge into this sea where its fresh water is never 
seen again is marvelous. Three times by power from above, 
this great river has been held back, parted as it were, so that 
its passage could be made as on dry land. Not a city ever 
stood on its banks. Not a ship ever sailed on its waters ex- 
cept where in the two instances above it spreads into an ex- 
panse of sea. Its length, about one hundred miles, unlike 
any other river on the earth, runs most of the way in its 
course beneath the level of the sea. I walked along the banks 
in thickets of forest and vines so dense that I could 
scarcely go. 

After lunch we drove to "Elisha's spring," not far from the 
present village of Jericho, which without doubt is the very 
spring that Elisha healed the waters ; an account of it may be 
found in 2 Kings 2: 19-22. 

It is a large spring coming out of a little hill, of perhaps 
one hundred inches of water. Below it are gardens, some 
orange groves, bananas and palm trees all irrigated from this 
spring, also supplying Jericho with water. 

We stayed over night in Jericho, finding it almost too warm 
to sleep. We were in a village situated farther below the 
sea level than any other one in the world. Here was tropical 
heat, never any frost, and that morning in Jerusalem it was 



206 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

too cold to sit in doors without a fire. In the hotel garden is 
a large sycamore or wild fig tree and seeing it reminded me 
that it was at Jericho, Nicodemus climbed into a sycamore 
tree to see Jesus pass by. In the morning I was up to see the 
sun rise over the mountains of Moab. Almost over the crest 
of Mount Pisgah the sun arose, throwing its sparkling gleams 
of light over land and sea, lighting up the treeless mountains 
west of the Dead Sea, and all the so-called "Wilderness of 
Judea," until each rock, crag and peak was bathed in colors 
of amber and violet as films of fleecy folds of cumuli brushed 
the face of the sun in recurring intervals of time. At about 
two o'clock that afternoon we again entered Jerusalem, real- 
izing that each day seemed almost a lifetime, traveling where 
mighty events have taken place, each moment crowded with 
thought until all my senses were so occupied that I seemed to 
be gathering pearls by the roadside. 

With much expectation one morning after a heavy rain we 
started in a carriage for Bethlehem. The dragoman and 
driver were on the seat in front as usual. Our carriage was 
drawn by three horses hitched abreast, yet two good Ameri- 
can horses would be much stronger. Over the table lands to 
the south of Jerusalem our course lay, with green grass 
springing up among the ever present rocks, and by the way- 
side. A few fig trees, now and then a garden, occasionally .a 
pomegranate tree, and many stone heaps and walls enclosing 
the little grain fields, yet to be plowed and cultivated. These 
were the main features of the country about us. We were 
traveling over the plain of Rephaim and probably not far 
from the place Sennacherib's army was encamped when smit- 
ten by the destroying angel. 

Over this same road Abraham led his son on his way to 
the rock on Mount Moriah, like a lamb to slaughter. In 
Genesis we read, "And Rachel died and was buried in the way 
to Ephrath which is Bethlehem, and Jacob set a pillar upon 
her grave." This occurred nearly four thousand years ago 
on this very road, and here by the wayside is Rachel's tomb, 
not the one Jacob set up, although the record adds it was 



TRAVELING IN PALESTINE. 207 

still there when Moses wrote the book of Genesis. The tomb 
has a dome and is of Jewish design, probably several hundred 
years old. This sacred spot is about a mile from Bethlehem 
and about five miles from Jerusalem. 

In driving to Bethlehem we met many of the Bethlehem 
women going to market on foot to Jerusalem. There is some- 
thing very remarkable about the women of this particular 
village, as they are good looking, stand very erect, and dress 
different from other Arab women. At any time in Jerusalem 
we could pick out the Bethlehem women from the great 
throngs of other women. 

By the roadside, also, is a well called the "Well of the 
Star," as here it is said the wise men found the star again to 
lead them to the place of our Savior's birth. They had lost 
sight of the star as they stopped in Jerusalem to see Herod. 
As we arrived at the edge of Bethlehem we stopped to look 
into the well that three of David's men risked their lives in 
order to get David a drink of water, because they heard him 
say he was thirsty. 

Down the narrow streets of Bethlehem we drove, where 
almost all the population make shell work and olive wood 
rosaries, cross and other articles. The shell work is beau- 
tiful, being all mother-of-pearl. We drove to the church 
of the Nativity, the oldest Christian church in all the world, 
built by the Empress Helena over fifteen hundred years ago. 
We were surprised at the entrance being only about four 
and one-half feet high, and only a little wider than a com- 
mon door. It is said that the main entrance is made smaller 
to keep the Mohammedans from riding in on horseback. 
The church is jointly occupied by the Latins (the name for 
Roman Catholics used everywhere in Europe and Asia), 
Greeks (the Russian national church), and the Armenians. 
The church is just about surrounded by their convent look- 
ing buildings. The three denominations with many priests 
have services wherein their hours are divided out to them 
by the Moslems, and stalwart Mohammedan soldiers with 
clanking swords keeping guard. Otherwise these Christians 



208 A CALlFORNlAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

would come to blows with each other. Each part of the 
church where services are held has the three different lots 
of lamps suspended, and each denomination uses its own 
lamps. There are some beautiful columns supporting the 
old cedar roof, and it may be some of them did service 
once in Solomon's temple. 

Under the church is the cave or grotto where Christ was 
born. We walked down into this grotto as there are stone 
steps. The Cave is about forty feet long, fifteen feet wide 
and about ten feet high. In the center, enclosed as a 
shrine, and in a blaze of light from fifteen lamps continually 
kept burning day and night, is a silver star that has an in- 
scription which translated from the Latin as it is written 
would read, "Here of the Virgin Mary Jesus Christ was 
born." What a hallowed spot ! Yet what a travesty on 
Christianity to be guarded by soldiers. 

Not far away in a little cell hewn out of the rock is 
where in the early centuries Jerome translated the Bible 
into Latin. He lived and died there and we saw bis tomb. 

I walked to the rear of the town. Out on the hillsides 
flocks of sheep and goats under the care of shepherds were 
still there. One night angels visited shepherds like these, 
wearing their sheepskin coats to keep warm as these do now. 
The visit was made to several shepherds in the country 
around Bethlehem. They were afraid. Do you wonder? 
I think everyone of us today would be afraid if an angel 
visited us in tangible form. The angel told them a wonder- 
ful story and after that a multitude of angels came suddenly 
and sang a verse that men have been trying to sing after 
them for nineteen hundred years. These shepherds (not 
having their faith tangled up in a theological school) just 
believed the story and said to one another, "Let us now go." 
The record adds that "they came with haste." I have no 
doubt they ran, as Oriental people do now, and found the 
story true. These shepherds told everybody they saw and 
men went "abroad" to tell the story and everybody they 
told it to "wondered." 



TRAVELING IN PALESTINE. 209 

How interesting any story is that makes people wonder. 
Nobody ever goes to sleep when such a story is being told. 
Over the same road we traveled on to Bethlehem, the wise 
men from the east came bringing their costly gifts. Nobody 
knows what country they came from, but they were wise 
men, having wisdom that comes from God ; and they had 
seen a new star. More than likely their neighbors laughed 
at them as they left home, with all their gifts. Yet they 
were simply nature's children and came to worship nature's 
God, the one that created all things. 

There is a hidden chain with links of Love, 
Long enough to reach the stars above; 
Just like these wise men from the East, 
You can catch this chain with simple faith. 

Learn from the lesson one of its conditions, 
To bring the best gifts in your possession; 
Then some bright star will lead you by sight, 
Until you, too, will find the Saviour some night. 

Off to the southeast of Bethlehem are some beautiful, 
sloping grain fields, not far away, and tradition locates these 
fields as the place where Ruth gleaned after the reapers. 
Read the Book of Ruth, that beautiful idyl of a story, so 
tender and touching, yet fully Oriental in its character. 

How my pulse quickened as I looked at all the sur- 
roundings of Bethlehem. Here the great Creator of all 
things, assumed the veil of humanity in order that we might 
be lifted up. As we rode away from Bethlehem we passed 
on to the south about six miles farther to see the three great 
reservoirs that Solomon built, called Solomon's pools. In 
one of them is a sealed fountain, perhaps the one he sang 
about in his songs. Recently the water from these pools 
has been piped to Jerusalem. Probably there is not as much 
water as in Solomon's time, as every hill and mountain is 
entirely without trees or bushes. We wanted to go to 
Hebron, but cholera was there and at these pools the road 



210 A CALIFORNIA! 1 *! CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

was guarded, preventing us from going any farther. As we 
rode back to Jerusalem each hour, filled with association and 
thought, seemed like a whole day. 

We hired some donkeys one day and with our dragoman 
started to ride to Gideon and Mizpeh. These places, near 
together, are about six miles from Jerusalem to the north- 
west. Passing the large Russian buildings on the left and 
taking a northerly course we soon came to the Tombs of 
the Judges, which we entered. On the face of a tall limestone 
cliff an entrance is cut into the rock, and then another 
entrance hid by stones running in a groove, are several 
chambers, with niches for tombs, leading from them. There 
are underground tombs all about Jerusalem, but none any 
where more extensive than these are. New tombs are often 
discovered, as in excavating the utmost care was taken to 
conceal them. Over and around rock-ribbed hills our course 
led us and by little villages. We came to the modern place of 
Neby Samuel, so named in honor of the prophet Samuel. 
This "high place" towers above all other hills in this vicinity 
and most people believe it is Mizpeh. We were a long time 
climbing up to the top over rocky trails. It stands 3000 feet 
above sea level and commands one of the best views of West- 
ern Palestine. After reaching the top where there is a little 
village we climbed to the top of a Mohammedan mosque, up 
the stairway of its minaret, after paying for the privilege. 
This whole section of Palestine lay spread out before us. At 
the east beyond many hills and valleys and over the Jordan 
were the mountains of Gilead and Moab. On the south were 
the towers and domes of Jerusalem. In the west beyond many 
rock-capped hills were the plains of Sharon and Philistia, 
and in the far distance the Mediterranean Sea. Mount Carmel 
and Tabor are easily seen towards the north. We were inter- 
ested in looking down on the valley of Ajalon, where Joshua 
commanded the moon to stand still and the sun over Gideon 
and the record adds, "And there was no day like that before 
it or after it." To the north about a mile on a beautiful hill 
is the old site of Gideon, in situation and surroundings re- 




OFF FOR GIBEON 

FROM JERUSALEM 



TRAVELING IN PALESTINE. 211 

sembling the site of Shiloh. We drove over to Gideon. The 
hill has tiers or ledges of rock encircling it on about the same 
levels and then a strip of good land and another ridge of 
rocky ledge. There are the ruins of the old city and a small 
Arab village on its top, a flattened surface. We were much 
interested in the only spring of water and the traces of an old 
reservoir below it. It was here that twelve men sat facing 
this pool and rising up fought a duel and all were killed. It 
was at Gideon that Solomon had a dream one night and God 
appeared to him, saying, "Ask what I shall give thee." Solo- 
man only asked for "an understanding heart to judge the 
people." Because he asked for neither riches nor honor nor 
even a long life, God heard his prayer and gave him great 
wisdom and also riches and honor. We are told that Solo- 
mon at one time offered one thousand burnt offerings and the 
whole valley resounded with the clang of "trumpets and cym- 
bals and musical instruments of God." It was at the high 
place, probably Mizpeh, while the Israelites were assembled 
for worship at the invitation of Samuel that the Philistines 
came against them with an army and God sent a great thunder 
storm and the Israelites routed them. It was then that Samuel 
raised up a stone of victory, calling it Ebenezer, "Hitherto 
hath the Lord helped us." In and about these peaceful looking 
valleys and rocky hills many mighty events have taken place. 
It was near sundown as we took another road back to Je- 
rusalem, the direct one from Gideon. Every little while we 
would meet groups of chattering Arabs returning home from 
Jerusalem ; anything they have to sell the women carry to 
market on their heads, or if too bulky the men pack it on 
donkeys or camels. The largest caravan of camels we saw 
was one hundred and fifty, coming to Jerusalem one day, all 
loaded with raisins. They came from the land of Hauran, 
beyond the Jordan. It was after 7 o'clock, with only the 
twinkling stars to light us on the way and the lonely cry of 
the jackals our only company before we reached Jerusalem. 
These were happy, pleasant days for me, as was every day that 
I rambled in and about this city so full of interest that at 



212 A CALIFORNlAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

times I became absorbed in thought; so lost in the past, that 
I would find myself humming over and over some little snatch 
of a song, yet my real self and every impulse was far, far 
away. Ever and anon there comes to me a consciousness that 
my little finite mind is not large enough to contain all that 
I see and hear; yet out of all this wealth of many lands and 
climes I am gathering many rare jewels to sparkle and shine 
my entire life through. Possession is always much more 
than expectation. 

One of the most peculiar places in Jerusalem is the Church 
of the Holy Sepulchure. To Greeks, Armenians, Latins, 
Copts and Abysinians who occupy this church with continual 
daily service and to their millions of followers, this church is 
the most sacred building in the world. Many thousands of them, 
chiefly from Russia, come on a pilgrimage each year. It is the 
event of their lifetime, taking many months to go and come, 
Usually arriving in Jerusalem before Christmas and staying 
long after Easter. All their accumulated savings of years are 
used on this pilgrimage as many in their native village, who 
cannot come, will expect a remembrance from the Holy Land 
on their return. Near the entrance of the church is a marble 
slab, where they believe the body of Jesus was laid, and one 
Of the first things they do is to make or buy a burial shroud 
as long as this piece of marble. The places of crucifixion, 
burial and resurrection are all shown in this church as the 
real places. Many of the stones on these sacred spots are 
kissed smooth by these pilgrims. Mohammedan soldiers 
stand guard over all these services, as these different sects 
have their hours of service arranged for them by the Mos- 
lems. I saw several of these services and in most of them 
incense was used and their zeal and devotion was very marked. 
They ascend several steps to the place of crucifixion and show 
a rent in some rocks. Every Easter they enact the most stu- 
pendous fraud in the history of any religion. The Latins used 
to be in the arrangement but now the Greeks alone. It is 
pretending to bring down holy fire from heaven and these 
Russian pilgrims believe it. Many costly lamps are kept burn- 



TRAVELING IN PALESTINE. 213 

ing and gold and glitter is everywhere. I believe the place of 
crucifixion is what is called New or English Calvary, near 
the Damascus gate. It is now a Mohammedan cemetery, a 
quiet place, and the one where, as we left Jerusalem the grass 
was greener than on any other spot. There is also a tomb near, 
which I believe to be the very tomb and place of the resur- 
rection. It is near the spot of Jeremiah's grotto, where it is 
believed he wrote the book of Lamentations. 

While in Jerusalem one of my favorite walks was over the 
Kedron valley passing by the Garden of Gethsemane and up 
to the crest of the Mount of Olives. Usually we started from 
near the Jaffa gate, outside of the walled city, wending our 
way through streets of good appearance and climbing over 
the hill of Calvary, cautiously treading on, around and over the 
Mohammedan graves, then through the Damascus gate into 
the city until we came to probably the most historic and 
interesting street, called Via Dolorosa, or "Way of Sorrows." 
It is only a little narrow, roughly paved street running to the 
left and east of the Damascus gate, yet it leads out to St. 
Stephen's gate, the only gate open in the east wall facing 
Mount Olivet. 

In and along this street Jesus was taken on His way to 
Pilate's judgment hall, and to His crucifixion. Probably the 
original street was many feet below the one we were walking 
on, yet the location was about the same. We went into a Latin 
church and down many steps by the side and under this street 
were old pavements and walls that may have been there 
then. Under old arches and by the side of convents and build- 
ings, with only an occasional doorway and grated window 
in their prison-like walls, the street leads, until on its right 
are the Temple grounds, with spacious entrances where only 
Mohammedans enter, and on the left are their quarters. 

We walked out of the city at St. Stephen's gate, at about the 
spot where it originally was. On and down a descending 
slope of about three hundred yards, then, turning to the right 
a few paces, we crossed the Kedron on a bridge. A few steps 
farther is the present Garden of Gethsemane, enclosed and 



214 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

only one little aperture in the wall for an entrance. The gar- 
den is enclosed with an iron fence, but outside of the fence 
and within the outside enclosure is a walk and about twelve 
shrines. I saw Catholic people come in and cross themselves 
before each shrine in succession. In the garden I counted of 
each, eight large cypress and olive trees, and one young Mexi- 
can pepper tree. Oleanders and different roses filled in the 
spaces about the different walks. 

We were much interested, yet we knew that the oldest 
of these trees were only a few hundred years old, as Titus, 
when he destroyed Jerusalem, cut all the trees off from the 
slopes of Olivet and the Crusaders found none in their time. 
The largest olive tree I judged to be about seven feet in diam- 
eter, probably planted in Crusading times. The ascent of Ol- 
ivet is very steep, along a narrow lane, with walls of either 
buildings or loose stone most of the way. We sat under the 
shade of some olive trees about two-thirds of the distance up 
the slope and picked up several pieces of mosaic pavement 
lying on the surface. 

Here is the best view of Jerusalem, as it is a near one and 
on about the same level. Not far from the place we sat 
Jesus told his disciples of the destruction of the Temple and 
Jerusalem, a prophecy that was completely fulfilled a few 
years later. As we neared the top we came to an Arab village, 
which is not visible from Jerusalem. Passing around the vil- 
lage we enter a gate and are in some large grounds, where 
church, chapels and some houses, also a stone tower about 
two hundred feet high^ are seen, and a grove of cypress trees. 
This property belongs to the Russians, and, being a little over 
the summit and toward Bethany, cannot be far from the 
spot where Jesus flew away to heaven one day. 

Hunting up a Russian priest who had a key to the tower, 
which is like all the keys in Palestine, of tremendous size, we 
climbed its stairway, passing several bells, to the top platform. 
We lingered long on this tower's top, to catch the wondrous 
view from this sacred spot. Nearly four thousand feet below 
us and seemingly not far away, yet in distance about thirteen 



TRAVELING IN PALESTINE. 215 

miles, is the mystic, shining surface of the Dead Sea and the 
plains to the north of it, where it is quite certain Sodom and 
Gomorrah once stood. To the south are the hills of Bethle- 
hem, yet that village is not in sight and the one object that 
arrests your attention is a mountain about ten miles away, 
unlike any other in Palestine. The top alone is visible, pyra- 
midical in shape, with the top flattened out. This mountain's 
top is artificial and was constructed by Herod, who built a 
palace and fortress there, with only one stairway of hewn 
stone. At the foot of the mountain many other palaces were 
built with gardens, and Herod named the place Paradise. This 
is the Herod whom men call "Great," the one who slew the 
children at Bethlehem, who died in his winter palace at Jeri- 
cho and was buried with much pomp on this mountain about 
four miles southeast of Bethlehem. 

There is not a more striking view on this earth than from 
this tower, where one can see the places where the greatest 
events connected with the history of mankind have taken 
place. Some large, fleecy clouds were slowly drifting across 
the azure sky above, and I wondered if those were the same 
kind of cloud that received the Saviour as He ascended. Just 
beyond, not far away, the village of Bethany lay with a quiet, 
restful look. As I turned to descend, large, dark-looking 
storm clouds began to gather out on the Mediterranean. The 
wind veered to the southwest, coming cold and chilly, filling 
the air with that peculiar, resonant sound usually preceding a 
rainstorm. The clouds overcast the sky, yet to the east be- 
yond the Jordan the mountains of Moab and Gilead were 
bathed in sunshine, and down on the Dead Sea little rippling 
waves, sparkling in the sunlight, were merrily chasing each 
other, as they were pushed onward by a soft summer breeze. 
Every light has a shadow, every life has some sorrow, and 
I would not that it were otherwise. 

Hastily we returned to our hotel, being just in time to es- 
cape the impending storm. As often as I call to mind the 
last time I gazed around from Olivet, I think of what those 
two angels said, dressed in white and looking like men, as re- 



216 A CAL1F0RNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

corded in the first chapter of the Acts of the Apostles. I was 
not there nearly nineteen hundred years ago to see a cloud 
receive Jesus Christ as He flew away to heaven, but some day, 
according to what these two angels said, He will come back 
in the same way and I shall see Him. (I Thess. 4:16-17). 

One morning in the bright sunshine, after a heavy rain dur- 
ing the night, we walked around the walled city outside of the 
walls. We saw scores of Arab women picking up from the slop- 
ing banks of the valleys encircling three sides of Jerusalem, 
bits of broken pottery, as everywhere the ground near the 
walls and down into the valleys is full of it. They grind it 
by rolling a large rock over it until it is ground very fine, 
using it to mix with cement for facing on walls. They find 
many old coins which they offer for sale. 

Another day we went about a mile southwest of Jerusalem 
and with an old hoe and pick started to find some tombs. 
Missing an American shovel, which no one seems to have or 
use, our courage and search soon ended. Everybody in Pales- 
tine as he completes any arrangement with another utters a 
peculiar saying: "It is finished." When fruit of any kind is 
over they say the same words. In no other country do we 
hear the words, yet so often used in and all over Palestine. 
How wonderful that these last words of our Saviour on the 
Cross should be continually used in that country now. 



VII. 

tight hundred Mile* up the %le 

Missionaries in Jerusalem not being allowed to hold street 
meetings and surrounded with so much form and ceremony 
in the so-called Christian churches, have a hard field. Their 
efforts are apparently, almost, fruitless among the adults 
yet there are a faithful few. Most of their effort is concen- 
trated in teaching and training bands of children. I attended 
the Church of England services near the tomb of David on 
Mount Zion. One Sunday morning as I took a seat near the 
door, the sexton came to me and said, "Come ye up higher 
there is plenty of room." How wonderfully applicable that 
little simple invitation of the Sexton is to everybody, either 
m a religious or business life. During the services, Turkish 
soldiers across the street stationed in a citadel, blew signal 
calls on a bugle. In the morning at about sunrise, we drove 
to the station to take a train to Jaffa as we wanted to take 
ship to Egypt. When it came time for the train to start the 
ticket seller had not arrived, therefore the train waited. After 
a long delay he arrived and a dozen or so passengers got their 
tickets. We were the only first-class passengers on the train 
and just before starting a Turkish official said to us as he 
peered in one of the windows, "Are you English or Ameri- 
can?" As the train rolled away, we looked back to catch 
one more glimpse of this strange city, so unlike any other in 
the world. Nearly every family is provided with a cistern 
to fill with rain water in the winter, as it is about the only 
supply of water for the entire year. The annual rainfall is 



218 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

over 30 inches. It is a country of thorns — nearly all the 
weeds are thorny. A gentleman went out one morning from 
Jerusalem and gathered thirty-two different species of thorns. 
The climate is trying, and one is subject to fever. There are 
no berries. No one raises them, and strawberries and black- 
berries are never seen in the market. We were soon ab- 
sorbed in the outlook from our car windows. Villages perched 
on the mountains and hills. Our course followed the ravines, 
with a continual descending grade for the first few miles, not 
a bush or tree in sight natural to the country — all cut for 
wood. A few olive orchards, some fig and pomegranate trees 
and grape vines growing near the villages. 

About five miles from Jerusalem we came to the quarantine 
station, where just twenty-five are allowed to come on the 
train from Jaffa every ten days. Most of them were in tents 
and as the train men took off their supplies, they were very 
careful to just leave them on the ground, so they could come 
for them, yet they had no cholera. Some of these quaran- 
tined people were Russian pilgrims. As we began to approach 
the Plain of Philistia, some wood was seen on the mountains 
in the form of brush, with more wood in the roots than in 
the tree. The train came to a sudden stop — the engineer only 
halted to oil the locomotive. I saw men plowing with camels, 
one camel hitched to each plow, and also many oxen. These . 
plains are very rich, free from stone and some of the soil is 
red loam. 

We soon came to Ramleh, a village of about three thousand 
people, situated in the midst of a sandy, fertile plain. There 
are many old olive groves and I saw one large grove of small 
olive trees and also many tall cactus fences. We saw soldiers 
and tents with a cordon thrown out on each road, as this vil- 
lage and all others toward Jaffa or Gaza are quarantined. 
Twelve per cent of the population of these villages had died 
of cholera in about six weeks. This plain was once densely 
populated, as the Palestine Exploration Society are excavat- 
ing near here and report finding the ruins of many ancient 
cities. A few miles farther and we came to Lydda, or ancient 



EIGHT HUNDRED MILES UP THE NILE. ?19 

Ludd, beautifully situated in this rich plain, but now strangely 
silent and closely guarded. To the north, as far as we could 
see, lies the beautiful plains of Sharon, and Solomon sang 
about the beauty of the "rose of Sharon." This ancient place 
was one of the first cities the Israelites built after occupying 
the "Promised Land." It was here that Peter healed the pal- 
sied man /Eneas, and when Dorcas died in Jaffa, Peter was in 
Lydda, eleven miles away, and being sent for, he hastened over 
this distance and surprised these disciples of Jaffa, by bringing 
Dorcas to life again. There are many palm trees about these 
villages. The manufacture of soap here and at Ramleh has 
been carried on many centuries and there are heaps of ashes 
piled on the plain and as a result nearly every person's eyes 
are afflicted, many persons blind or nearly so. As we ap- 
proached Jaffa, we passed through many orange groves, the 
trees hanging full of fruit, much of it well colored. I was 
surprised to see them planted only about ten feet apart and 
very little cultivation. Upon our arrival at the station we 
were ushered into a carriage and driven to a German hotel, 
where no cholera existed as with other hotels and residents of 
about a block ; they keep guard night and day, keeping most 
of the people out and off from the enclosed block. No 
steamer had yet arrived that would take passengers to Egypt. 
We were in a town where about one every hour was dying of 
cholera. It was a new and strange situation for us to volun- 
tarily enter a cholera-infected city, yet in order to get around 
the world we must travel and we saw no other way of get- 
ting out of Palestine. No steamer would take any passengers 
to the north and it was too cold and stormy to camp north 
to Beirout — besides a probable quarantine of ten days. Had 
we attempted camping overland into Egypt it would have taken 
camels, on account of long stretches of desert without water, 
and more than likely a quarantine and much trouble in passing 
the frontier. Camels can go about eight days without water 
and sometimes longer. 

The next morning I arose early and climbed upon the 
housetop. No steamer in sight. It was Sunday, and the 



220 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

weather was mild and warm — very different from Jerusalem. 
With orange trees all about laden with fruit, the best at this 
season of any in the world, and mild, soft, summer breezes 
gently swaying the tree tops, and a greater abundance of 
flowers than any yet seen, forgetting the other features of our 
situation, it seemed like our sunny southland of California. 
I attended the English church in the enclosure, where not 
more than a score were present. The preacher prayed that 
the pestilence might be stayed; did not forget the President 
of the United States, and preached a fairly good sermon. The 
rest of the day I passed in a quiet, restful way, yet at times 
I found myself musing upon the "immutabilities of life." At 
sunset I again ascended to the housetop, scanning the horizon 
seaward for our steamer. None in sight, therefore I watched 
the sun as it dipped behind the blue rolling waves of the 
Mediterranean, listened to the talking of the birds as they 
hunted for their resting places in neighboring treetops, and 
watched the after sunset glow of the sun, as it wound its 
brilliant color over sea, land and sky. I never tire of sunrise 
or sunset and always find that there is a pulse within my soul, 
to catch something of their glow, a beauty that satisfies, where 
nothing else will do. As I climbed down from the housetop, 
the cricket's took up their song with its refrain, thus every 
creature has a part and place to fill. 

Tuesday morning came, still no steamer, yet about eight 
o'clock we received word our steamer was coming in and a 
request that we go on board at once as the barometer was 
falling, and the westerly wind was increasing. We lost no 
time in getting a porter who carried all our baggage, and buy- 
ing an embarkation ticket we walked for the first time out 
into the cholera part of the town to embark. It seemed strange 
that in the oldest seaport in the world it should be so diffi- 
cult to get on board a ship when a wind is blowing. We found 
a large boat manned by several stalwart oarsmen and we em- 
barked. Singing a sort of a song in unison, they carried us 
safely through a break in the reef where large waves were 
rolling, to the steamer, where we climbed on board, with our- 



EIGHT HUNDRED MILES UP THE NILE. 



221 



selves and baggage entirely dry. Yet the wind was increas- 
ing each moment. There were many barges alongside laden 
with boxes of oranges, and the ship was receiving their car- 
goes. 1 he wind rapidly increased and by noon it was difficult 
to receive either passengers or oranges. A few passengers 
came at this time and the women screamed in terror as they 
were lifted aboard, thrown and caught like blocks of wood 
some of their baggage dropped into the sea. Some of the 
barges were dropping their oranges into the sea, as the ship 
could not take them. Finally after hundreds of boxes were 
cast adrift that way two large barge loads yet remained and 
they too cast the entire lot of those fine oranges into the sea. 
1 he ship could take no more and the barges could not return 
to land laden as they were. The boxes did not sink, but went 
drifting up the coast, jumping up and down on those huge 
wave,. The steamer blew its whistle, hove its anchor, and 
hurried away while the barges were left to make their way to 
land. As far as I could see they, too, drifted to the north in 
trying to land. While in Joppa I did not visit Simon, the tan- 
ner s house. Cholera was very bad in that part of the town 
and I thought it unwise to run unnecessary risk. Besides I 
very much doubt if the original house of Simon is there. 

As Joppa retreated in the distance I thought of Peter's 
vision, where a sheet was let down from heaven full of ani- 
mals, clean and unclean, creeping things and birds This 
port is where Jonah found a ship going to Tarshish, paid his 
fare and sailed away, nearly three thousand years ago You 
all know the story, how God prepared a great fish to swim 
after him, and finding Jonah in the depths of the sea, with his 
head all wrapped up with weeds, so that he would not 
drown, he just swallowed Jonah whole. Probably the fish 
was very hungry and this bunch of sea weeds was just his 
sort of food and like many people who eat fast and swallow 
things whole, had indigestion and was sick, so God after 
three days and three nights, giving Jonah plenty of time to 
pray and repent, as Jonah said he was in "the belly of hell " 
spoke to the sick fish and it poked its nose up on the seashore 



222 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

and hove Jonah out on the land. It is quite likely that the fish 
died at that time, having indigestion so long, as in the last 
century B. C. the remains of some large fish was discovered 
near Joppa, and was taken to Rome by a man named Marcus 
Soauru®. Its backbone measured eighteen inches in diameter, 
and the monster was forty feet long. The storm increased, 
and towards evening the waves were the largest I ever saw. 
The ship creaked in every joint, and trembled like an aspen 
leaf, and while we were being tempest tossed and as I was 
watching the tremendous waves I said to Elmer, "This is the 
same sea and something like the storm Jonah found when he 
sailed." He replied, "Yes, but I am afraid if this ship goes 
down there are no whales here ready to swallow us." All 
night long the stormy winds continued, with occasional 
dashes of rain. We were leaving Palestine, after several 
weeks of travel in the land. We found its people still living as 
in Bible times, purposely kept so by Providence and prophecy 
in order that the people and the Book may agree. More than 
we expected had been realized. Our dreams had become real- 
ities, hope had centered into fruition, until we could now say 
"We too, have seen a goodly part of the Promised Land." In 
the morning we found the storm abating and with much in- 
terest we watched our approach to Port Said, as we saw 
other ships coming and going from that port. Having read 
about the great heat, we were surprised at the cool wind, so 
decidedly chilly. Just before noon the ship cast her anchors. 
We were still in sight of the Mediterranean, and the entrance 
is really the beginning of the Suez Canal. No one was al- 
lowed to land, as we must go to Alexandria and be quaran- 
tined. I noticed the ship had long ropes tied to the piers on 
shore, and they slipped conical pieces of tin over each rope in 
order that no rats could come from the shore and bring on 
board the bubonic plague. All the afternoon our ship was 
discharging cargo and we were interested in looking at other 
ships. A P. & O. steamer sailed for India. Another ship 
coming from England the day before sailed for Australia. A 
Russian ship from the far east came through the canal flying 



EIGHT HUNDRED MILES UP THE NILE. 223 

a double quarantine flag, simply meaning they wanted no com- 
munication except to take in coal, as all ships take coal at 
this port. The coaling is done from a lighter, by a long string 
of Arab?, who carry the coal into the ship in baskets on their 
heads. About 7 o'clock in the evening we sailed for Alexan- 
dria, and I watched the revolving light house. This was the 
fourth ship we had sailed in on the Mediterranean, an Aus- 
trian one. About noon, the next day, we entered the harbor 
of Alexandria. A doctor came on board and everybody was 
examined. Yet the ship was declared in quarantine for three 
days. Anchors were dropped, guard was established, and we 
were to wait and see if anybody had cholera germs that 
would manifest themselves during this time; meanwhile we 
could look at Pompey's pillar. Every morning several ships 
came into port, and every afternoon and evening several would 
sail out, as Alexandria is a large city. It is the principal port 
and the main outlet of Egyptian commerce. One evening an 
American gunboat sailed away, flying a very long pennant, 
signifying that it was returning home with its term of ser- 
vice ended. Two English ships came in one morning loaded 
with troops. One ship sailed for Manchester, England, loaded 
with the largest cargo of cotton that ever sailed away from 
Egypt — 11,084 bales. One day at 1 o'clock all were excited 
as the time had arrived to be released from quarantine. Two 
doctors came on a barge with a fumigating machine. All the 
deck passengers were taken on the barge, as all their lug- 
gage must be passed through the fumigator. The first and 
second-class passengers were lined up and one by one we 
passed, the doctors simply feeling of our pulses. The ship 
then sailed into the inner harbor, we stepped ashore, hired 
a carriage and, passing the custom house and showing our 
passports, were soon in a hotel, free once more. Three times 
we have been let out of quarantine, and the most singular 
part of it all is that each time our liberation occurred on 
Sunday. 

Toward evening we took a walk to Pompey's Pillar, stand- 
ing like a sentinel for nearly two thousand years, since its 



224 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

erection. It is said to be the "largest monolith in the 
world." One round column or pillar of reddish colored 
granite is almost one hundred feet tall and ten feet in diam- 
eter. It came from the granite quarries of Assouan, about 
eight hundred miles up the Nile. It is surmounted by a cap, 
and for its base has a square block of granite of enormous 
size. It is the only one of Alexandria's ancient monuments 
or pillars left. One of the greatest light-houses ever erected, 
once one of the wonders of the ancient world, stood in this 
city. It was 550 feet high and threw its light one hundred 
miles out to sea to light the wayfaring mariner into this 
great city that Alexandra founded. Not a vestige of this 
lighthouse remains. It seemed singular that we were quar- 
antined in the harbor for fear of cholera when a recrudes- 
cence of the cholera was in the city, several deaths occurring 
each day. There were 300,000 cases in Egypt during the 
summer and fall, so virulent that eighty-five per cent of them 
were fatal. 

Almost the first thing I noticed in entering the city was 
some beautiful poinsettias, some of the stalks twenty feet high, 
in bloom. I saw none in Italy or Palestine. What a mottled 
throng of people of all sorts, yet Northern Africa has very 
few negroes. The next morning, not caring to stay in the 
cholera- stricken city, we purchased railroad tickets to Cairo, 
and took the first train, a distance of about 150 miles. Pass- 
ing a salt lake we soon came to the best farming land in the 
world, the "Delta of the Nile." There are many villages 
made of sun-dried brick, and thatched with corn stalks, and 
much of the land is used in cotton-growing. The cotton 
stalks the farmers pull up and gather for their year's sup- 
ply of fuel, usually piling them on top of the house. There 
are many cattle herded by the boys and girls, and the coun- 
try roads are full of these people, either going to or return- 
ing from market. There are a few acacia trees along the 
roads, but none in the fields. We met several trainloads of 
cotton. About the villages were a few orange trees, nearly all 
of them of the mandarin variety, and very fine eating. Just 



EIGHT HUNDRED MILES UP THE NILE. 225 

a little after noon as the train was ambling along I heard 
Elmer exclaim: "Look, there are the pyramids." Looking 
in the direction he indicated, I saw the two large ones at 
Gizeh, about eight miles from Cairo. They loomed up like 
mountains in height, yet their rigid, straight outlines were 
unlike any real mountain. We were looking at them many 
miles away. How closely my attention was riveted to them 
as I anticipated climbing the largest one. We were really 
in Egypt, a land full of mystery and romance, the oldest 
country in the world that has a history of civilization and 
progress. Her history was written by Manetho, 285 B. C. 
Egypt's only historian in the distant past. But all of his 
writings are lost and all we know of them has been handed 
down. History and prophecy include Egypt, yet her monu- 
ments and tombs are unfolding a record that reaches back 
to the very dawn of creation. Our train entered a large 
station. We alighted and took a carriage to a hotel. We 
were in the largest city in Africa, full of Mohammedan 
mosques, large, wide European looking streets and people 
in them of all kinds and colors. At every corner some 
Arab wants to sell you scarabs,' having some, as he claims, 
from the oldest tombs in the country. Again, as in Alex- 
andria, I saw very large poinsettias full of blossoms, each 
stalk bending under its weight of crimson stars, some of 
them twenty inches in diameter. Many of the streets are in- 
terlaced with large acacia or sycamore trees, all in full 
leaf, looking like tunnels arched over with green boughs. 
Today, December 1, the Mohammedan fast of Ramadan be- 
gan, to last an entire lunar month. The people neither eat. 
drink or smoke anything from sunrise until sunset. In most 
of the towns and cities criers go along the streets about mid- 
night to wake the people up in order that they may eat, 
sometimes using an old drum. 

One morning we started in a carriage with a dragoman 
to visit the old site of Heliopolis, about ten miles north of 
Cairo, once known as the "City of the Sun," so called by tl - 
ancient Egyptians, and this name is several times mentioned 



226 



A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 



in the Bible. We rode out a wide, fine-looking street, lead- 
ing to and by the Khedive's country palace. Some well-kept 
gardens surrounded the elegant homes, with thickets of pome- 
granates and oleanders ; bananas with long pendant bunches 
of fruit, and some orange, lemon and lime trees, with their 
fruit interspersed among the leaves and branches. The 
weather was all that could be desired, with a cool north wind 
blowing, and flecks of fleecy clouds, almost transparent, and 
hanging like banners between us and the azure blue of 
heaven. Passing by some large government barracks, we 
paused to see native Egyptian troops in their military drill. 
Over this road, or some other running parallel, Joseph rode 
in his golden chariot as the two noted cities of Lower Egypt, 
Memphis and On, were only about thirty miles apart. Pass- 
ing by the Khedive's summer palace, we notice the Egyptian 
flag flying, which always denotes that he is present, as most 
every afternoon he is driven in a carriage to Cairo, with 
outriders and footmen in attendance, then the flag is taken 
down during his absence. I wondered what part of the pal- 
ace his harem was situated in, where its occupants pass the 
time sipping delightsome "delights" clad in costumes of fan- 
ciful color, and wearing silk-embroidered slippers. We drove 
into a yard where there is a sycamore (wild fig) tree, said 
to be the one that Joseph and Mary rested under as they 
fled from Bethlehem to Egypt. It is scarcely three hundred 
years old, yet in all these countries some old venerable tree 
is associated with some historic event. Trees, like folks, 
get old and die, as the predecessor of this tree did in 1665, 
A. D. A spring of water in the same yard connected with 
the same tradition and said to be the only sweet water in 
this vicinity, is quite likely the well Joseph and his family 
drank from, as wells or springs of water have continual 
life. We soon came to the site of Heliopolis, and only one 
monument of all its splendor is still standing. It is 66 feet 
high and about six and one-half feet square at the bottom. 
We walked around it. It is of red granite and was quarried 
at Assouan, about 650 miles up the Nile. It is obelisk in 



EIGHT HUNDRED MILES UP THE NILE. 227 

form and each of its four sides are covered with hierogly- 
phics. At the top of all the inscriptions on each side is the 
figure of a hawk. It is the oldest obelisk in the world. 
Moses saw it ; Joseph, when ruler over Egypt, saw it, as 
here at this city of On he married the daughter of one of 
the priests of the temple. A few steps north we saw some 
of the foundation stones of this great and at one time match- 
less Temple of the Sun, said to cover three acres, and we 
walked over a portion of it, rich in ruins of pottery and 
glass. 

Toward the north we could look for miles out on the 
beautiful and fertile "Land of Goshen." At one time this 
city with its palaces, monuments, obelisks and its great 
temples, was one of the most brilliant cities on the face of 
the earth. The worship of the sun, because it was the 
greatest and strangest object in range of moral vision, seemed 
to attract these ancient people. Even in these modern days 
everybody in every country that is not acquainted with the 
true God as revealed to men by Jesus Christ, have a god of 
their own to whom they bring sacrifice and worship. Again 
I looked at the obelisk and saw its shadow on the north 
slowly veering around to the east, and I tried to think of the 
thousands of years that shadow, day after day, in this almost 
cloudless climate, had turned its way, like some grim finger 
of fate. I could not grasp the time ; I found that beyond 
my power, yet as I mused I found that each year represented 
a seedtime and a harvest, the bursting of buds in the spring- 
time and the falling of leaves in the autumn, and out of such 
abstract figures as 5000 years I began to catch some of its 
real meaning. We drove back to Cairo, watching the peo- 
ple, hearing the birds sing, basking in the sunlight and no- 
ticing how funny the crows look in Egypt, being of a black 
and gray color. That afternoon we went out on one of the 
main thoroughfares to see the people. Every few moments 
some gentleman of position or wealth, in a handsome car- 
riage drawn by fine horses, would come in sight, and about 
ten paces ahead was a forerunner, called a "sais," who, with 



228 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

a wand several feet long in his hand, bare feet and legs, 
wearing a skull cap, a gorgeously embroidered jacket and a 
flowing white tunic, would run along in the street ahead of 
the horses. It is said that they "run the pace that kills," 
and die young. Now a water carrier goes along with a 
goatskin full of water strapped to his back — and with the 
hair left on and bloated in appearance, it is almost lifelike. 
Then an English cart with European ladies of fashion in it, 
with a gaily dressed Egyptian attendant standing on the 
rear or driving for them. Now a train of camels laden 
with sacks marked in Arabic characters, with their scrannel- 
like necks poised upward, many Egyptians on foot, some 
of them running, all seeming to like the street better than 
the sidewalk. Now a lemonade peddler, then a man selling 
slippers, all hanging on a long pole; traveling dry goods 
merchants — all passing and repassing in one changing, rest- 
less, heterogeneous stream — the like of which can be seen 
in no other large city in the world. We walked to the 
banks of the Nile and found the drawbridge open to let 
boats through. What a stream of latteen sail boats, hun- 
dreds of them, mixed, jammed and huddled together, every- 
body talking and gesticulating, while a great mass of hu- 
manity and animals gathered at each end of the bridge to 
pass. For an hour we watched this surging stream of boats . 
and the gathering people of all shades of color from deep- 
est bronze to the bluest of black, and from tawny to copper 
color, clad in every variety of costume. The bridge closed 
and this great block of humanity, that had gathered at each 
end of the bridge, made a grand rush, mingled in with all 
sorts of wagons, asses and camels, each muleteer cracking 
his whip like an American cowboy. Everyone was shout- 
ing at the top of their voices, and we ran with the rest at 
the top of our speed to see how it would seem. A gentle- 
man from Nebraska, who ran with us and the throng, stum- 
bled and fell, as the saying is, "head over heels," narrowly 
missing being run over. As we reached the center of the 
bridge, the rush coming from the opposite way had all the 



EIGHT HUNDRED MILES UP THE NILE. 229 

force of an avalanche, and I am wondering yet how we ever 
got through with a whole skin. A little excitement some- 
times is quite exhilarating. 

We hired a carriage and rode to the so-called "Jacob's 
well." I do not think that Joseph dug the well, as it was 
discovered after the Mohammedans came to Egypt, and 
is in an unlikely place, as it is on a hill and near old Cairo. 
It is a natural place for fortifications and near the place of 
"Mameluke's leap," therefore was more than likely dug to 
obtain water if encompassed with an army. It is a wonderful 
piece of work, dug in soft rock, about fifteen feet square, 
and for 150 feet has a sloping pathway running down wide 
enough to drive a yoke of oxen. This sloping path is dug 
outside of the well in the rock, circling spirally around it 
with now and then a window through the rock into the well 
Then oxen were used to pump the water, as the aperture 
is small below where the oxen worked the pumps. 

One morning, accompanied by a dragoman, we purchased 
tickets for a station on the railroad running up the Nile called 
Bedrechem," about twenty miles from Cairo. Our train 
the usual morning one for upper Egypt, was a long one of 
several coaches, and each compartment filled with passen- 
gers. Soon after leaving the large station in Cairo, where as 
trains arrive and depart there is much bustle and tumult 
we crossed the Nile on an iron bridge some distance over 
the water. Our course ran south on the right bank of the 
Nile. To my surprise, for most of the distance our train 
ran along a narrow embankment of earth, and to the left 
we saw the river, and to the right, for miles and miles, the 
whole country was one vast lake of water. Out of these 
areas of water, on knolls and at the edges, were villages gray 
with age, and the little houses were clustered together as 
thick as the seeds in a pomegranate. 

There were thousands of date and palm trees, most of 
them forty or fifty feet high, with trunks as straight as ar- 
rows, all of the same size, surmounted with tops not large, 
and all standing in the water. Much of the fruit on these 



230 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

palm trees had been gathered, yet a few clusters were left, 
looking like bunches of gold and amber. Between us and 
the river was a narrow strip of land, beyond a canal ; near 
the track were fields of sugar cane and Indian corn. Beyond 
the Nile, which is dotted with boats sailing along with lat- 
teen sails, are large sugar mills working up the sugar cane. 

At 9 o'clock we arrived at our station. Out of a score of 
"Good" donkeys our dragoman selected the best ones, and 
engaging two boys to accompany us, we mounted and drove 
away. One donkey boy carried a basket on his head con- 
taining our lunch, and the other one ran behind us to lay 
a stick upon any lagging donkey. There was only a little 
plot of ground where the station and village stood, all the 
rest being covered with water except a road on the top of a 
dyke running west of the village. -We galloped out on this 
road, with lakes on either side, and again I was surprised. 
It was market day in Bedrechein, and as far as we could see, 
on this dyke thrown up above the water, an almost un- 
broken procession of Egyptian people, men and women com- 
ing to market. Many of the men were bringing nothing, but 
every woman had something on her head — a basket of grain, 
chickens in a basket, dates, vegetables, eggs, butter, dried 
lentils, split beans, sugar cane, buffalo cream and many other 
things. Some of the men had asses and camels loaded with 
produce, others old and gray were walking along leaning 
on a cane, as perhaps for fifty years they had never missed 
a market day, and their fathers did the same before. They 
had very little clothing to bother them. Most of these coun- 
try people dress in black, buying the cotton cloth and dyeing 
what little they wear at home. 

After riding two or three miles, with groves of palm trees 
and water surrounded villages on each side, we came to ruins, 
where regular hills of them were heaped up completely full of 
broken pottery, pieces of brick, broken potsherds, and frag- 
ments of limestone. Other heaps, some of them forty feet 
high and covering two or three acres, were scattered about in 
this palm tree forest. They looked like gigantic dust heaps, 




NATIVES GOING TO MARKET 

AT MEMPHIS 



EIGHT HUNDRED MILES UP THE NILE. 231 

and on their surface only stunted palms grew. Great ex- 
cavations have been made in these heaps, yet they are all of 
the same appearance. Was it some great convulsion of na- 
ture that produced this singular appearance? Desolation 
reigned supreme. The reason it did is because thousands of 
years ago certain prophets in the Bible foretold that a city 
they called "Noph" would perish. This word is simply the 
Egyptian for Memphis, and we were standing on the old 
site of Memphis. A king of Egypt named Menes founded 
this city. The most we know about ancient Memphis is that 
Herodotus wrote of it about 450 B. C. In his writings we 
are told that Menes changed the course of the Nile in order 
that this city might be built by its side. Menes is of the 
first dynasty of Egyptian kings, and it is claimed by many 
chronologists that his time is 4000 years B. C. Do not get 
dizzy over these figures, yet remember that this is the oldest 
king, and Memphis was the oldest city in the world, as Da- 
mascus is the oldest city existing. No city ever had such 
a wonderful history. Palaces, temples, pythons, monuments 
and statues were added by each successive Pharaoh, and the 
city outlived all of the thirty-one dynasties of Egypt, and was 
in existence when all of the pyramids and tombs were built. 
Even down to the founding of Alexandria it was an import- 
ant city. Joseph, when he was a ruler or head minister, 
lived here for sixty-one years. Where is it today? When 
the Mohammedans came into power in Egypt they took the 
stones— all that was movable — to build Cairo with, and the 
Nile has covered the rest. The great temple Ptah had two 
colossal statues, and one of them lies thrown down, which 
we saw. It has been raised a few feet from the ground 
and we climbed a ladder to see the face. The statue was 
forty-two feet long anu of immense proportions, being the 
figure of Rameses II. Another smaller statue and broken 
fragments are all that is left of this great city. We had 
fourteen miles to go before we could reach the great pyra- 
mids at Gizeh. We galloped through these palm tree groves 
and by some villages until we came to where the Nile in its 



232 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

overflow did not reach, and what a change. Here is the 
Libyan desert with its drifting sands, its rocks like rusty 
gold, and a score of pyramids outlined against the soft blue 
sky, of Qifferent coloring (as the centuries of time have 
molded the rock&they are made of), more delicate in color 
than any pigme ; i|P of paint yet invented. We were entering 
the greatest andj oldest cemetery in the world, where for 
many miles on atfe, edge of this treeless desert, called by the 
old Egyptians the£"rg£ion of death," being on the west bank 
of the Nile, and |a|§$lated to contain the remains of thirty 
millions of peopleiR^ich and poor, peasant and king, here 
sleep waiting for the' r resurrection trumpet to sound from the 
heavens above. With interest we approached the nearest 
pyramid built in a succession of steps on all sides. It is 
older than Cheops and is believed to be the first one, there- 
fore the oldest one in Egypt. If the inscription is correct 
that was found on an inner door, then it was erected by 
the fourth king of the first dynasty, just about eighty years 
after Menes' time, although there are authorities that place 
Menes' time at 3266 B. C. At the latest date here was a 
pyramid that was over 1000 years old when Abraham was 
born, the most peculiar one of the lot. The door to the 
chamber inside was carried off to Europe many years ago, and 
is now in the Museum Berlin. In the shade of this oldest 
piece of work now extant, ever built by man, we ate our 
prepared lunch. All around us were the yellow drifting 
sands, and in the east the Nile valley, now covered with 
water, under its annual overflow. Thought, sentiment, age 
and association sometimes form a picture of transcendent 
beauty. For twenty miles up and down this valley the 
great city of Memphis extended. In the valley was a land 
of the living ; where I sat was the land of the dead. Con- 
trast — yonder is a wealth of living water bringing life and 
verdure; here are shifting sands covering death and desola- 
tion. 

After lunch we started to look into some of the tombs. 
The first one we entered is called the Serapheum and was 



EIGHT HUNDRED MILES UP THE NILE. 233 

discovered about 1850 A. D., in a remarkable manner. Stra- 
bo, an historian, writing many centuries ago, said the tem- 
ple of Serapis was in danger of being covered with drifting 
sand and that the avenue of sphinx leading to the temple was 
partly covered. A gentleman by the name of M. Mariette 
was walking over these sands in 1850 when he saw the head 
of a sphinx above the sand, and by its side a libation table 
with an inscription on it relating to Apis-Osiris. He hired 
some men and commenced digging and found an avenue bor- 
dered with sphinx, six hundred feet long. The temple 
Strabo saw was gone, but down in the sand seventy feet deep 
at the end of the avenue he found the long missing burial 
place of the sacred bulls or Apis of Egypt, which were 
simply regarded as the incarnation of Osiris, the greatest 
divinity in Egypt. We walked down this avenue and en- 
tered the tomb, seventy feet below the surface, where these 
bulls were mummied after death and buried in this cata- 
comb. We were in a vast temple twelve hundred feet long, 
hewn out of solid rock, and on the sides were recesses or 
mortuary chapels, long rows of them, but never opposite 
each other. In these vaulted recesses were colossal sar- 
cophagi, one in each, about thirteen feet long, eight feet 
wide and eleven feet high, cut out of red, black or gray 
granite, polished beautifully. We climbed a ladder of several 
steps and looked into one sarcophagus. They are several 
inches thick and all hewn out, making a coffin that is also 
polished inside. Here in this serapheum the Apis mummies 
were deposited in these stone sarcophagi, and in the magnifi- 
cent temple of Serapis, many feet above on the surface (not 
a vestige of it now remaining), for many centuries the sa- 
cred bull was worshipped with more pomp and ceremony 
than any god in Egypt. On some of the side walls of these 
chapels are inscribed tablets written in hieroglyphics, giving 
the age and details of death and burial of the Apis, also the 
persons present on the occasion. This tomb was excavated 
about 1500 B. C. When discovered only one Apis was 
found, the rest having been destroyed or removed at some 



234 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

early age. The next tomb we visited was the tomb of Tih. 
Tih was a wealthy priest that lived in Memphis 3000 years 
B. C. and married a grand-daughter of one of the Pharaohs. 
This is a beautiful spacious tomb, and any child can read 
how Tih and his family lived by looking at the paintings and 
sculpture in base reliefs on its inner walls. He was a great 
hunter and used to hunt the crocodiles and hippopotami that 
lived in the river as low down as Memphis in those days. 
Tih kept many kinds of birds and beasts — geese, ducks, pig- 
eons, cranes, goats, donkeys, gazelles and antelope. In one 
picture many people are pictured as bringing gifts of oxen, 
fruit and vegetables. 

In the distance is the Nile and men are fishing, boats are 
sailing and birds are sitting on the water or flying. On 
another wall in the foreground, cattle are grazing in the 
meadows, oxen are plowing and treading out grain just 
the same as today, and with his wife he is walking out and 
watching some boats coming in the distance. There are 
cows crossing a ford, a flock of geese being driven home, 
carpenters building a boat, potters making pottery, artisans 
melting gold. In a field a sower is scattering seed, another 
reaping grain, and elsewhere storing the grain away in a 
granary. There are pictures of his home built of wood, 
yet nothing but a tomb in solid rock would do for his burial. 
Like the custom of his time he and his wife are pictured 
as veritable giants, while all the other people are of usual 
size. About 5000 years ago this work was done, yet the col- 
oring is just about as perfect today, so wonderfully has it 
all kept down in the depths of this dry desert. We had 
purchased in Cairo that morning some magnesium wire in 
order to see all these wonders as we ' lighted them. Every 
figure is life-like, and the way the asses kick and bray, the 
crocodile rises for a plunge, and the ducks rise to fly away, 
are as full of life as any Landseer can paint them. Full of 
new thought, we walkeu away. Even in the tomb of the 
Serapheum, as its discoverer removed the stones that con- 
cealed the Apis, he found a footprint in the sand within and 



EIGHT HUNDRED MILES UP THE NILE. 235 

some finger marks in the mortar left there 3500 years ago 
by some Egyptian mason. 

With another glance at all the pyramids of Sakkarah, eleven 
of them in this group, and at the largest one with steps on 
all sides — the oldest monument in the world — we mounted 
our donkeys, and with their heads and our eyes set on the 
pyramids of Gizeh, we rapidly rode that way, fully twelve 
miles distant. At our right were vast areas of the Nile val- 
ley, covered with water — the time of high Nile ; at the left 
and along our pathway lay the vast Libyan desert. Many 
tombs of Egyptian kings have never been discovered, and 
perhaps within the sound of our voices, if sand and rock 
did not intervene, were tombs of royal mummies awaiting 
the blast of an angel's trumpet, to emerge from their burial 
places. , 

Over undulating ridges of sand our course lay. Some 
stretches were drifted hard where our donkeys could gallop 
as well as California mustangs. One of the donkey boys 
ran ahead until I wondered why he ran so fast, as he was a 
mile away. Suddenly I missed him, and galloping along I 
saw him by the edge of the Nile overflow on a rock, saying 
his prayers as he faced Mecca, rv Mohammedan, if he can 
find water, will always perform an ablution before he prays. 
I noticed that this boy, at lunch, as we offered them some 
food, declined to eat on account of the Ramadan fast. Af- 
ter getting to the pyramids of Gizeh they had this fourteen 
miles to travel over again in order to go home and take the 
donkeys back, and their wages were twenty cents each for 
the day. Not until 4 o'clock did we reach the plateau where 
two of the seven ancient wonders of the world are. How 
interested, wide awake and expectant we were as our now 
tired donkeys jogged along. We saw a group of people 
standing on the top of Cheops in outline against the sky, 
and we proposed to stand on that towering, height before 
another night chased away this bright sunlight. Gleaming 
with hope, we struggled on, with our eyes fixed on this goal 
beyond. Each step we took the pyramid grew, until it looked 



236 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

like some mountain view. Coming to a little hill, as Elmer 
and the dragoman rode around it, I jumped from the don- 
key and ran directly up the hill, as I knew the Sphinx was 
just beyond its brow in a little hollow. There it was not 
over one hundred feet away. I have read so much about 
this wonderful Sphinx that perhaps, expecting too much, I 
must acknowledge I was disappointed. You have repeatedly 
read descriptions of this wonder of the world, therefore I 
will not need to delineate, except to say its size is gigantic, 
its conception and execution — hewn, as it is, in solid rock — 
marvelous, yet the depths of my soul did not respond in 
admiration as I expected. I climbed on its back, I walked 
around it and tried to respond in enthusiasm and failed. Its 
age, its immovable look, its position, looking out on the Nile, 
are so replete with thought that it would be easy to write 
pages of poetry or prose by borrowing sentiment to en- 
velop the Sphinx. 

We walked from the Sphinx to Cheops, not far away. We 
were in no hurry to climb, as each moment we looked at 
these immense monuments their vastness grew. All about 
in the undulating tableland are open graves, where treasure 
hunters have dug into ancient tombs and mounds of seem- 
ingly shapeless masonry. We looked up Cheops, and its 
bulk and size shut out much of the sky and horizon. Our 
sense of awe and wonder alone remained. We commenced 
on one corner to climb Cheops, and as two Arabs sprang to 
my assistance, I resolutely refused to let them touch me. I 
wanted to climb this great gnomon alone, the most stupen- 
dous one ever set up by human hands. I knew from my 
boyhood days that the polished marble surface of this pyra- 
mid had been stripped off to use in Cairo centuries ago by 
the Mohammedans, yet as I took a step and glanced up its 
rugged Alpine sides, its height seemed to me to be almost 
insurmountable. 

Each course of rock as regular as any masonry can be laid, 
stretched off on the corner far enough to encompass one 
side of a square plot of land containing thirteen acres. The 




SPHINX AND CHEOPS 



EIGHT HUNDRED MILES UP THE NILE. 237 

thickness of each course varied from three to five feet, and 
many of the blocks of stone were from twenty to thirty 
feet long and several feet wide. It took me about thirty, 
minutes of tiresome effort to reach the top, and each step 
enlarged my ideas of its magnitude. The top, not entirely 
smooth, is said to be thirty feet square. The height of 
Cheops is now 480 feet, as twenty feet of the original height 
of 500 feet has been taken off to make room to let tourists 
gather on its top. In 443 B. C. Herodotus, an ancient his- 
torian, did not know 0$ its origin, and speaks of its great 
antiquity, yet he hands down a tradition that it took 400,000 
men twenty years to construct Cheops alone. In plain view 
a great causeway is seen leading to the river. The stone 
of these pyramids was obtained on the other side of the 
Nile river valley, a few miles away. What a view! This 
pyramid stands about one hundred feet at its base higher than 
the Nile river valley, and just on the edge of a desert that 
extends as far to the west as across the United States 
from New York to San Francisco, and as far as I could 
see the utmost desolation. At the north the famous "Delta 
of the Nile," evergreen, one of the most fertile and, if planted, 
fruitful regions in the world. At the south is the site of 
Memphis, now covered with water, her pyramids, where 
Joseph lived and ruled, and at the east areas of water, and 
near the other edge the little island of Rodah, where it is 
said Moses was found in his "ark of bullrushes." Beneath 
my feet and off to the south lay the millions of dead of forty 
centuries. In the distance, with her minarets, spires and 
towers all aglow with the rays of a declining sun, lay Cairo, 
and beyond — just behind this sun-kissed metropolis of Af- 
rica — are the Bakattam hills. A wonderful panorama, unlike 
any other in the world, and its interest is increased because 
of the associations its awakens. We were standing upon a 
monument whose history is lost in mystery, buried up in 
the pre-historic past, just as much an enigma and wonder to 
men twenty-five hundred years ago as today. It is much 
easier to grasp something of its size than to apprehend its 



238 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

age. I tried to realize something of such figures as 6000 
years. How abstract they seemed, yet out on this area 
of water to the east for fully a mile, and across the edge 
of the tomb-pitted desert, there stretched a great shadow, 
mighty distinct and sharp in its outlines. The sun was 
not far from setting and this shadow kept dividing the sun- 
light where it fell, until all the space it increasingly covered 
was darkened like the advent of an eclipse. Day after day, 
this slowly pacing shadow has crept out on these lines dur- 
ing low Nile and high Nile, summer and winter, month 
after month, and year after year, measuring the size and 
registering the height of this, the largest work of man in 
all the world— then with a thrill of something akin to awe, 
I seemed to stand on this mighty monument and grasp out 
of the misty past something that is real, a little glimpse of 
what six thousand years of time means. It was with re- 
luctance I turned to descend, but I saw this mighty meas- 
uring shadow lengthening out on the landscape, and com- 
menced to clamber down, musing to myself as I went, some- 
thing of which I now present : 

The builders measured the stars and sun, 
And found this place where they begun. 
Each stone was tried with square and rule, 
Until its place was found to be true ; 
Thus the structure was built in such perfect shape 
That twice each year no shadow it made. 

It is said that this pyramid of Cheops is built on the exact 
latitude and longitude, where the sun each spring and fall, 
at midday, stood exactly vertical over it, making twice each 
year that before its polished marble covering was stripped 
off there was no shadow on either of its four sides. All the 
pyramids are "Oriented," built to face the four cardinal points. 

As I mused still farther in climbing down, there came a 
beautiful thought. (Just like the builders of this pyramid, 
God wants us to use his Word to keep us in such a par- 
ticular latitude and longitude that when Jesus Christ comes 



EIGHT HUNDRED MILES UP THE NILE. 239 

for us some day, His light will be so directly vertical that 
He will find no shadow or darkness about us, and we will 
"be caught up — in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.") 
Just as the sun was hiding its face beyond those hills out on 
the Libyan desert, I stepped off from this monument and we 
hurried to some electric cars not far away and boarded them 
for Cairo. Each side of our car track was this Nile over- 
flow of water, and villages surrounded with water, also 
running parallel with the car track on one side is a fine 
avenue bordered with acacia trees and a carriage drive be- 
tween them. The Egyptian peasants were going home, and 
as our electric cars crossed the Nile into Cairo, there were 
many sail boats with their lateen sails neatly furled, lying 
at anchor; women were filling their water jugs with Nile 
water, buffaloes and cattle were drinking, and as I looked 
up and around, the after glow of sunset had caught the rocky 
hills over toward the Arabian desert and they were gleaming 
in colors of rose, violet and gold, ana back against the glow 
of the sky over the Libyan desert I saw the two large pyra- 
mids as sharply outlined as ever, only seeming to possess 
additional size and interest. 

One morning we left Cairo for Luxor. For the first 
one hundred miles much of the valley was inundated from 
the Nile, and dotted with many mud-colored and partly 
submerged villages, carrying their wood piles, consisting 
of weeds, corn stalks and cotton bushes, on their house 
tops. Each village has tombs, whitewashed, looking like 
honey-combed tombs, to keep pigeons in, and they surmount 
the highest points of their mud walls. Hundreds of acres 
of Indian corn in Lower Egypt, and as the day wore on and 
we reached Upper Egypt Egyptian corn was the prevailing 
crop. Large fields of sugar cane, almost ripe for gathering, and 
standing as thick and close together as it could grow. Grad- 
ually the submerged fields began to appear and before night 
we saw the farmers harrowing in grain in the almost muddy 
fields, as the overflow of the Nile had passed on down the 
valley. Many mud villages and palm tree groves, and in 



240 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

places the "shadoof" worked by brown looking figures just 
as they were created, except a very scant loin cloth tied about 
them. In other places some sleepy-eyed looking buffalo, or 
oxen, slowly treading around in a circle, and within a water 
wheel was slowly revolving with its endless necklace of 
earthen pots — one of their ways of lifting water for irri- 
gation — called a "sakkieh." Sometimes we would pass the 
ancient mounds of some forgotten city, and each side of the 
valley was a desert, all sand hills and sand plains, with up- 
heavals of rock and a background of mountains. Out in 
these country roads I found a never-ceasing interest, as now 
a file of loaded camels would come into sight, women carry- 
ing water to the village on their heads in water jugs, don- 
keys laden with loads much larger than the donkey, every 
scene representing a little part of this strange world that we 
live in. In places we saw thousands of wild ducks and 
snipe. About noon we passed a village where their market 
day was in progress. Acres of white turbaned heads, all bob- 
bing around in their chaffering as to price with those about 
them, and nearly all of them dressed in black. Towards 
evening we passed Keneh, where all the best quality of water 
jugs are made; many of them are exported to Palestine. They 
mix ashes with the clay in their construction. 

At Wasta many passengers alighted, and many came on 
board, among them a young man who was an Egyptian. He 
was a student in some school and could talk English. We 
were talking of many things, when he asked me, "Have you 
a Nile in your country?" I said, "No; it rains there." He 
replied, "That is not good like the Nile." Egypt and its 
people are so interwoven with this river that in all their an- 
cient tombs on their monuments, and in their temples, one 
will see that the Nile is sketched to represent life and was 
considered a sacred river. At sundown we were in a part of 
the valley where the overflow had passed down so long be- 
fore that for miles the growing clover and different grains 
formed one sea of green, and many cattle, sheep, camels and 
donkeys were, as we say in California, "staked out," the 



EIGHT HUNDRED MILES UP THE NILE. 241 

population being so large that most of them could only have 
small patches of each crop. Not until midnight did we reach 
Luxor, and our condition was fully described by a remark 
Elmer made— "We are as dirty as pigs." In my entire life 
I never experienced such a day of being annoyed with dust. 
Every crevice through the car windows and doors, the finest 
of dust had been sifting in all day, as the train moved along, 
until we looked like veritable dust heaps. 

The next morning I arose early and found that our hotel 
was on the main street, leading from the station to the boat 
landings on the Nile, and the Khedive of Egypt was 
coming to pass from boat to rail, and all the village author- 
ities were stringing up flags and setting posts to hang the 
strings on and wrapping them in colors like a barber pole, 
and setting up palm leaves, thus decking out the street in 
gala attire. We started out to see the greatest ruins in the 
world— what is left of "hundred gated Thebes," as Homer, 
the great Grecian bard, called this city, the No-Amon of the 
Bible, and at one time the great rival of Memphis and Nine- 
veh. In the Book of Nahum in the Bible at chapter three, 
and eighth verse, is a description of this ancient city, "popu- 
lous No, that was situated among the rivers, that had the 
waters round about it, whose rampart was the sea, and her 
wall was from the sea." A large portion of this city was 
built on an island and also both sides of the river. Ancient 
historians speak of this city and wrote about its power, 
wealth and magnificence. Except the great temples for 
worship, the city was built of sun-dried bricks and crum- 
bled into ruins many centuries ago. There were two immense 
temples about two miles apart on the east side of the river, 
and the village of Luxor is clustered around one and the 
village of Karnak at the other. 

We hired some donkeys and drove over to Karnak, pass- 
ing by the site of a sacred lake, and could see that at one 
time the two temples were connected by great avenues lined 
with sphinxes. One avenue connecting the two temples must 
have had 500 sphinxes, one-half on each side. Coming to 



242 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

the main entrance of the temple we entered a wide avenue 
lined with colossal rams and sphinxes. We were on the west 
side, and at one time this avenue five miles long connected 
this temple with temples across the Nile at the foot of some 
mountains. This original temple area covered about ninety 
acres, and thirty acres of it was covered with buildings. There 
were twelve immense gateways facing the four cardinal 
points, three on each side, yet within each other, and all 
connected by either great rows of colonades or sphinxes. 
The first great gateway we entered was three hundred and 
seventy feet wide, fifty feet deep and one hundred and forty 
feet high, as you will see of astounding size, led us into a 
court of about three hundred feet square, then another gate- 
way almost as large as the first, the lintel over the top being 
only one immense stone over forty feet long. Passing this 
pylon, we came to a great hall — the grandest hall ever built 
by the genius of men in all the world. Its size is about 
■three hlundred and thirty feet long and one hundred and 
seventy feet wide, and in height it stands in the clear about 
eighty feet. Then the stone ceiling, resting on stone girders, 
is supported by one hundred and thirty-four gigantic col- 
" umns or pillars in sixteen rows, the central one about thirty 
feet higher than the side rows, forming a clerestory with 
side windows. These central pillars of stone are about sev- 
enty feet long without the base or capital, and only lacking 
a few inches of being thirty-six feet in circumference. But 
why give all these figures? One has no idea of such colos- 
sal size until you See them. There were giants in those days 
and how little I seemed to be as I walked around. All this 
stone work is covered with figures oi gods and kings, of their 
prayers, war scenes and offerings. No pen can describe these 
wonders, as there is nothing else in the world to draw any 
comparison with. 

We wandered around for hours in court and temple and 
through pylons, flanked with gigantic statues. One obelisk 
ninety-two feet high and eight feet square stood in mighty 
majesty, while its companion nearby is thrown down and 




CROSSING THE NILE 

AT ANCIENT THEBES 



EIGHT HUNDRED MILES UP THE NILE. 2-13 

broken into pieces, some of them even looking too large to 
ever be moved. All kinds of sculpture and every wall, col- 
umn, architrave and frieze, statue and obelisk covered with 
pictorial sculpture. 

We rode back to Luxor, silent and bewildered. Was this 
Temple of Karnak only some dream? 

Early in the morning, with some donkeys and a dragoman, 
we started to look at some of the wonders of ancient Thebes, 
over on the west bank of the Nile. Riding to the Nile, we 
engaged a boat and the donkeys hopped into one end while 
we occupied the other. We were afloat on the mystical Nile 
that I used to read about in my boyhood days. Scrambling 
out of the boat on the west side of the river, we mounted 
the donkeys and rode toward the north along a canal. For 
over two miles through the country, full of growing crops, 
once ancient Thebes, we rode until we came to an avenue 
once lined with sphinxes, leading to the west from the tem- 
ple of Karnak. Entering this avenue and riding directly west, 
we soon came to the temple of Kournah. This temple, be- 
gun by Seti I, and finished after his death by Rameses II, 
was built about 1500 B. C. The walls of this temple are 
sculptured with beautiful pictures. They represent a funeral 
procession crossing the Nile and are sacrificial. 

There are several small rooms connected with this temple. 
No one knows what they were used for. This temple and 
the one of Karnak are of interest, as they were built about 
the time Joseph was ruler under Pharaoh, and doubtless he 
saw them and knew of their use and splendor. After leaving 
this temple we saw to the west in some tall cliffs many tombs 
cut into the rocks and a small valley running back into the 
mountains or large rock cliffs. We rode to and entered this 
narrow valley, with a dry water course winding from side 
to side. We were riding up the valley of the Tombs of the 
Kings. 

Not a thing ever grew there since the world began. All 
is desolation, and the wierd looking rocks stand like senti- 
nels at the right and left taking on strange shapes. The sun 



244 A CAL1F0RNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

beats in with pitiless force, and there is not a ripple of a 
breeze, nor a bit of shade, except behind some rock. Not a 
living thing ever made this place it's home. 

As we rode along, the ravine narrows and the cliffs were 
steeper and higher. Piles of sparkling bits of rock lie at the 
base of the cliffs. We turn to the south and come to a clear 
cut in the rocks on one side of this narrow valley and enter 
another valley; and in the distance is a mountain — Egypt is 
a land full of strange mountains — we feel sure the tombs 
are under that mountain, but we are mistaken. Our course 
up this valley very soon takes us into an amphitheater, sur- 
rounded by steep hills, all covered with curious looking small 
rocks. On the side of these hills, and one of the strangest 
sights in the world", are the most remarkable tombs ever found. 

We had to wait until 9 o'clock before we could enter, as 
this year the government has furnished electric lights in ail 
the principal tombs and turns on the lights at 9 o'clock. We 
entered several tombs, among them Seti I and Rameses II. 

Unlike the temples at Luxor and Karnak, all these tombs 
are full of representations of life to come, in painting and 
sculpture, on the walls. The walls are covered with ser- 
pents, bats and scarabs. There are scenes representing a 
judgment day, where scales are used to weigh all that has 
been done on earth, and if favorable, then admitted into the 
"Abode of the Blest" and the presence of Osiris; if they 
are unfavorable, they are sent back to earth, usually in the 
form of a pig, to "root hog, or die." 

The largest tomb is that of Seti I, measuring 470 feet in 
length, and it descends 180 feet. All of the tombs have long 
flights of steps leading downward, and then chamber after 
chamber, and passages connecting them, dug out of the 
solid rock. On some of the ceilings the stars of heaven are 
represented. 

The most interesting of them was the tomb o-f Amenaphis 
II, discovered in 1898. After a long descent of stairs and 
through corridors, we came to a chamber where the ceiling 
is painted blue, and all dotted over with yellow spots to 



EIGHT HUNDRED MILES UP THE NILE. 245 

represent the stars; and the sarcophagus of this dead king 
is there, and his mummified body, with its face unwrapped, 
and a bright electric light suspended by his head, revealing 
his features, almost as perfect as when buried over three 
thousand years ago. The amount of work and time to carve 
out of almost the bowels of the earth and in these rocks the 
scores of tombs and the paintings on their stone walls, are 
altogether works of marvel and astounding magnitude. Only 
about one-third of the tombs of the 334 Egyptian kings have 
yet been discovered. Therefore there are rich treasures 
and many tombs buried somewhere in and under the rocks of 
this desert waste. 

With the donkeys, we climbed the steep hills and came 
directly back of the Temple of the Queen Hatshepsu, and 
here in this cliff, near our descent, were found the group of 
royal mummies a few years ago, among them Rameses die 
Great. We entered this temple, where some of its courts 
and sanctuaries are carved out of the mountain overshadow- 
ing it. 

Our next visit was to the Temple of Medinet Haboo, sec- 
ond only to the Karnak temple in size and splendor. The 
sculptured walls here are remarkable, and unlike the tombs 
of the kings, depict scenes in Egyptian history. In one place, 
as among the trophies of war, three thousand five hundred 
and thirty human tongues and three thousand hands are 
presented to the king, for which he is rewarding the vic- 
tors ; and there are other large heaps of hands and tongues 
which men are counting one by one. In another place the 
king is putting out the eyes of captured prisoners. Ladies 
are seen wearing gloves and carrying fans and parasols made 
of ostrich feathers. Some of the coloring and most of the 
pictures are as perfect as the day the artist finished them. 

About one mile farther north we came to the Ramesseum, 
where Rameses the Great did all he could to perpetuate his 
name. The greatest statue ever carved out of rock by man 
stood here at the left of the main entrance. This, the larg- 
est statue in Egypt, and probably in the world, is carved out 



246 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

of one block of red syenite granite from the quarries at As- 
souan. It is about seventy-five feet high and across the 
shoulders measures two feet and four inches. It is computed 
that it weighed set up on its base one thousand tons. Some 
mighty hand or power has hurled this great statue to the 
ground and the fragments it is broken into are wonderful. 
One ear is three and one-half feet long, and the face six and 
three-quarter feet wide. 

Many centuries ago Greek and Roman travelers wondered 
at all they saw, just the same as we did, and the historian, 
Dodorous, wrote about them. 

On this plain, a little farther east, we came to the Colossi 
of Memmon, two giant statues still left of an avenue of them, 
looking in their battered and defaced state like men getting 
old and crippled. Many centuries ago one of these statues 
emitted sounds of music each morning about sunrise, and 
ancient historians wrote about it, but it was repaired a few 
hundred years ago and has not been heard since. 

We mounted our donkeys and rode back to the Nile, and 
as we boarded our boat a bronze figure with the smallest 
of loin cloths on was planting some watermelon seeds in 
the sand where the Nile had just receded. Just what right 
he had to that particular strip of sand I know not. 

Another day of wonders only partially told ; another glimpse 
into the misty past. As we rode back over the Nile, the 
evening sun painted the temple of Luxor, lighting up pylon, 
pillar, frieze and capital with fires of amber and gold. 

We visited this temple standing near the brink of the Nile. 
Like the other temples, the scale of size and area covered is 
colossal, and wall, pillar and pylon are covered with all sorts 
of base relief and sculpture — the whole a glimpse into these 
Egyptians' way of living, and their most important events in 
peace and war. 

The lotus flower was the sacred flower of upper Egypt, and 
the payprus of lower Egypt. We saw on the wall a picture of 
the conquest of Palestine by Shishonk, the Shishak of the 
Bible, who after capturing Jerusalem and plundering the 




TEMPLE RUINS 

AT ANCIENT THEBES 



EIGHT HUNDRED MILES UP THE NILE. 247 

temple, is pictured as returning to this city of No with much 
treasure and many prisoners. The prisoners wore long 
beards, the same as the Jews do now in Jerusalem. Mon- 
day morning at 3 o'clock you could have seen us wending 
our way along the street to the station. A cloudless sky, 
clear and bright, full of twinkling light. As I looked at 
that expanse of woven and interwoven clusters of nebulae 
spanning the sky, I thought of what a little girl once said: 
"Mamma, when the cows die, do they go to the Milky Way?" 
While waiting for the train I closed my eyes and mused, 
as I often love to do. I had seen something of the wonders 
of ancient Thebes, still mighty in their ruins, matchless in 
their majesty, and in many respects like Baalbec, unequalled 
in any other part of the world. I had seen the tombs of these 
Egyptian kings, over in the edge of the Libyan desert, hewn 
out in the rocks, on a scale of greater magnitude than any 
in Palestine, and covered with their conception of a life to 
come — marvels of their character and kind with much of 
the coloring and details of painting and sculpture as per- 
fect as when executed thousands of years ago. Like Mem- 
phis, in and around these tombs is another great Necropolis 
of the dead numbering many millions. The largest of these 
temples (Karnak) in the days of its unequalled grandeur 
was called the "Throne of the World," and its title was 
applicable. Why was this rent asunder? Why are the mul- 
titudes gone and in their places little dirty villages cluster- 
ing like a wasp's nest in and around the ruins? Read the 
30th chapter of Ezekiel and you will see these three quota- 
tions: "Will execute judgments in No. Will cut off the 
multitudes in No. No shall be rent asunder." This has 
all taken place, not happened, as nothing ever happens in 
this world that has any relation to destiny and result. Mighty 
Thebes or the old city of No ! Will I ever hear your name 
without a strange mixture of feelings, a mingling of the 
past with the present, a history that is written on your ruins, 
a destiny that was foretold and is accomplished? I have 
failed to convey to you any conception of the magnitude of 



248 A CALIFORN1AN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

these temples ; you must come and see for yourself. There 
are times when words fail to convey full meaning, when 
only material sight will do, because there is nothing else in 
all the world to use in comparison. My musings were inter- 
rupted by the arrival of the train going up to Assouan, which 
we boarded, and rode away to see the sights of another day. 
The ruins of other temples exist — particularly one at Edfoo 
that we saw in the distance, about ten in the morning, but 
concluded not to visit it. We were running on the eastern 
bank of the Nile and at times where the waters of the Nile 
never reached, out on the edge of desert lines, where there 
never grew a blade of grass, bush or tree. All or most of 
the villages were out on those desert lands, with their mud 
houses as gray as the sand, and so close together that ceme- 
teries between them occupied almost the continuous inter- 
vening space. The valley kept narrowing, and wherever the 
Nile water touched the land, as its annual overflow passed 
down the valley, the verdure of grass and grain covered the 
ground, a sharp contrast between life and death. Material 
life everywhere, birds on the wing, boats on the river, men 
in the fields, camels, asses, horses and women passing along 
on the country roads, ever moving and ever doing, if nothing 
more than a ring of men smoking or gambling by the road- 
side. In some places the shadoofs were running to lift the 
water from canal or river. 

As we neared Assouan, I saw some villages entirely roof- 
less, yet the pigeon roosts were built upon the walls. The 
rocks on the edge of the Arabian desert kept getting larger 
and crowding the valley up close to the river, and on the 
Libyan side the ridges of yellow sand and black rocks rose 
higher and higher. Then a bend in the river to the right and 
our train, taking a sort of semi-circle around the back of 
the houses, out in the desert, came into the station opposite 
Elephantine island and near the river brink, just south of 
the business center of Assouan. Great tents made of Indian 
cotton cloth, covered with huge figures (many of them ani- 
mals) were erected to receive royalty in. This Indian cotton 



EIGHT HUNDRED MILES UP THE NILE. 249 

calico is very striking, and is used for decorating and the 
covering of fancy tents. There were Egyptian flags every- 
where and much bunting, in curious oriental designs. 

We found a hotel to suit us and began to look around. 
The people were on the eve of some great expectation, the 
whole town being tremulous with excitement. And no 
wonder, as in two days all the royalty of Egypt, and some 
from England, were coming to celebrate the opening of the 
largest barrage or dam in the world. We were at the ex- 
treme southern boundary of Egypt, about eight hundred 
miles up the Nile, and just below the first cataract. Early 
in the morning we took some donkeys and a dragoman, 
starting as soon as prices could be arranged, for a trip to 
the temple of Philae up in the edge of Nubia, the next coun- 
try south of Egypt. A little over five miles of sandy desert 
road was before us. Passing the railroad station, we drove 
directly away from the river until we left the town, then 
turning south we passed through a large Mohammedan ceme- 
tery of queer looking graves. 

Just where Egypt leaves off and Nub' begins no one 
knows, only as you pass the four miles of rapids on th« 
river then it is Nubia. The day was warm and cloudless, 
as all the days are here, and the sun has great heating power 
on these dry desert sands. We were on the main traveiea 
road to the Soudan and Central Africa, also Abyssinia. We 
met camels coming from hundreds of miles away, loaded 
with ivory, sienna leaves and other peculiar products of the 
desert and the Soudan. I noticed that the camels were 

whiter the farther south we went. In Palestine they are 
all gray. 

Witli the people from Syria to Nubia, we found that the 
farther south we went, the darker they are, yet the real dark 
negro race does not live here as a rule, until near to equa- 
torial Africa. We rode between two ranges of rock-clad 
hills, not seeing the river or rapids. The rocks are a dark 
granite, piled up in curious shapes. I have seen none just 
like them in any other country. Speeding along, we emerged 



250 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

from the valley and came to a little gulf of water, where, in 
the distance, out in the Nile and in the reservoir held back 
by the great dam, we saw the temple of Philae. 

Hiring a dahabeyah (boat), we were rapidly driven by 
the wind, as they hoisted a lateen sail, toward the "Holy 
Island," as Philae was once known. 

We soon reached the Temple of Philae. It is on an isl- 
and of the same name and once its soil was considered very 
sacred. With other places it shared the reputation of being 
the burial place of their great god Osiris. Just as Mecca 
is to the religious Mohammedan of today, so was a visit to* 
Philae, and only to be obtained by permission of the relig- 
ious Egyptian at one time. The most solemn oath an Egyp- 
tian could take was, "By Him who sleeps in Philae." The 
farther south one travels in Africa the less ancient are the 
temples. This one, the oldest part, was built about 375 B. C. 

The first place of interest is called "Pharaoh's Bed," which 
is simply a little roofless temple. It stands on a little plat- 
form and is singularly beautiful as to form and sculpture. We 
enter the temple and find many parts as perfect in color of 
painting and picture as if time had stood still for over two 
thousand years. Some capitals are wreathed in the bud and 
blossom of the lotus, with the leaves of the papyrus and the 
palm. There is also some bas-relief work that excites won- 
der and admiration from every traveler. It is an exquisite 
little sphinx on a pale red ground and a line of sacred 
hawks alternating, white upon red, then white upon blue. 
Many of these are perfect pictures in polychrome decoration. 
How much better and pleasing it is to see these many won- 
derful sights in Egypt than to hear about them, for in the 
best description one can give, you must remember that you 
only get it second-handed. Any picture always becomes more 
real and life-like when you see the original. Of each temple 
we have seen, one could write a volume about with any at- 
tempt at detail ; and even then when you come to Egypt and 
see these vast structures you will say "only one-half was 
told." I will not linger on detail of description, but leave 




TEMPLE OF I'll 1 1.. K 

Mill \ 



EIGHT HUNDRED MILES UP THE NILE. 251 

the beautiful temple, the last one we visited, and only one of 
many, situated in Nubia. The great barrage being full of 
water, has cut off and submerged most of the island, as the 
water comes almost to the doors of the temple when the 
dam is full. As our boat pushed away, it seemed strange to 
see Miamosa trees in full leaf and the tops of palm trees, 
just projecting their heads above the water, and on the sur- 
rounding shores some villages were abandoned to let the 
uprising water take possession. We directed the boatmen 
of the dahabeyah to row directly to the barrage, nearly a mile 
away, as we had previousfy directed the donkey boys to meet 
us there with the donkeys. We were in a region where the 
Dom palm grows, and it does not grow in Lower Egypt. Side 
by side with the date palm I saw them growing, and with 
their shock-headed crown of finger-like fronds, hiding the 
nuts which were as large as Jerusalem artichokes. This is, 
I think, the only nut in the world that one eats the shell 
and throws away the kernel. 

As we glided through the water with the tops of small 
rocky islands peering at us, I looked up the Nile and re- 
gretted that we did not have the time to go still farther south, 
until we reached Khartoum, in the southern edge of Nubia. 
We could have reached that city in five and three-quarter 
days, while it took General Kitchener, with the power of 
the British army behind him, thirteen years to reach Khar- 
toum, not long ago. 

We arrived at the barrage and walked along the top of 
the largest dam in the world to the western end. I looked 
up on the small mountain tops of the j-ioyan desert, so un- 
like any other mountains, as these are black boulders piled 
one on top of the other, and encompassed with drifting beds 
of sand, with lines curving as gracefully as any snow drift 
you ever saw in northern climes. I walked about a mile to 
the top of the nearest ridge to catch a glimpse of one of the 
world's famous landscapes. In places I sank instep deep in 
the yielding sand, and no one could have told by the track 
whether it was made by an ass or a camel or your humble 



252 A CALIFORNlAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

servant. In other places the sand was packed so hard that I 
seemed to be walking on yellow ice, with a slightly yielding 
surface. I saw the cataract and dam, the river, the reser- 
voir, the desert, and the environing mountains. Yonder, al- 
most covered with water, lay "the Holy Island," with its 
temple — beautiful, lifeless, something from the far past, now 
asleep with all its wealth of sculpture, painting, poetry, his- 
tory ana tradition — one of those scenes that is so difficult 
to put into words or color, and at the best, without its at- 
mosphere of association, and a sky that is ever cloudless, 
were I to attempt any farther description, it would simply 
be no better, than a catalogue. 

I retraced my steps, recrossed the dam and, finding our 
donkeys awaiting us, we rode away. Before reaching As- 
souan the sun set behind the little craggy peaks of bottomless 
mountains out on the Libyan desert, and I watched for the 
after glow, as nowhere else in our travels around the world 
have I seen such ethereal light and shade, in the different 
colors, as thrown from the sky. It came, and in the colors 
of pink, violet, amber and gold, diffused all over the varied 
landscape around me, there arose a ruddy glow, shading all 
the other colors with such an opalesque tenderness of tone 
that it seemed to me I was not on a little piece of this earth 
any more, but was in some region of immortality and light. 

I think that this vast desert of yellow drifting sand that 
the sun continues to shed its traveling light over after sunset, 
catches the rays of the light and by some opaque method un- 
known to me transfers its brilliance to earth and sky, with 
no falling dew to blind or blur its passage through the air. 
This unwonted brilliance is unknown even in California, 
where many of these conditions of air and desert are the 
same. Another surprising feature was its continuance, far 
longer than I have seen in any other corresponding latitude. 

As we arrived in Assouan, all the streets were hung with 
flags and bunting, strung on long lines, and many thousands 
of lanterns with four glass sides of different colors, and all 
having a candle in them, were hung over the buildings. Sev- 



EIGHT HUNDRED MILES UP THE NILE. 253 

eral great triumphal arches were erected, and about a score 
of steamers were anchored in the river, and three of them 
had red cloth laid up sloping stairways to the main street — 
running along the river bank. All these steamers had 
rows of bright flags on each mast and in rows from fore to 
aft. We ate our supper and walked on the street. All the 
candle lanterns were lit, each steamship was dazzling with 
light, an Egyptian band was playing on the bank of the Nile, 
dogs were barking, cafes were open, some rooms were filled 
with dancing girls, donkeys with men on them were racing 
along, a few carriages running to and fro, thousands of 
Egyptians with a scattering of almost every Occidental race 
under the sun were walking along the street ; a large hotel 
across the river on Elephantine island sparkling from roof 
to ground with electric light, other steamers moored over 
the river — all illuminated — together with e lights of the 
hotel casting sparkling reflections on the moving current ; the 
stars and the slowly growing crescent moon shining overhead 
— all this will give you a partial idea of how Assouan looked 
on the eve of the greatest celebration in her history. 



VIM. 



tgifpt and Jndia. 



Today, December 10, 1902, marks one of the greatest events 
in Egyptian history — the opening of the Assouan dam, lo- 
cated about eight hundred miles up the river Nile on the first 
cataract. The cost of this dam, which is one and one-quarter 
miles long and as straight as a bee line from bank to bank, 
is about $16,500,000. It is estimated that it will irrigate 
about 530,000 acres of land. We walked the entire length 
twice, on the top, which is twenty-three feet wide. Each side 
has a parapet built of solid masonry about three feet wide 
ana the same in height. On one side of the remaining width 
is a car track, narrow gauge, and on the other side is a row 
of double geared heavy gate or sluice openers, built in Ip- 
swich, England. There are one hundred and eighty of them 
about thirty feet apart. One hundred and forty of these 
sluices are twenty-three feet high by six feet and a half 
wide. The other forty sluices are upper ones, i. e., about 
twenty feet higher, and are eleven feet and one-half inch by 
six feet and one-half inch wide. 

Its greatest, width at the bottom is one hundred feet, and 
its maximum height is one hundred and thirty feet. Aver- 
age width about sixty-five feet. The level of the water above 
the dam is raised about forty-six feet, and it is said reaches 
up the river, before there is any current, one hundred and 
fifty miles. The amount of water stored is estimated at 
about 1,500,000,000 cubic yards. The greatest depth of water 
on the dam in the lowest channel is about sixty-five feet. 




< 



y. - 

< z 

3 H 

O H 

f. ': 

x - 



EGYPT AND INDIA. 255 

The number of men employed in its construction averaged 
about ten thousand, mostly Egyptians. The stone cutters 
came from Italy. The contract for finishing allowed five 
years. The work has been completed in four years. Sev- 
enty-four thousand tons of Portland cement and ten thou- 
sand tons of iron are used in the construction. It also took 
twenty-eight thousand tons of coal. 

Securing our tickets of admission to the "barrage," as it 
is named here, which were given to us through courtesy, 
because we were Americans, we wended our way on donkeys 
from Assouan to the dam, distance about four miles, arriv- 
ing there about i o'clock. 

In forty-five minutes more the entrance would be closed to 
all except royalty and a few invited guests. A temporary 
railroad station was erected near the east end of the dam, 
with a sloping gangway of about one hundred yards, covered 
with red cloth, leading to the top. Small trolley platform cars 
were in waiting to carry everybody for a small charge to the 
west end, where the laying of the last stone was to take place. 
We walked over to see the surroundings. About thirty of 
the one hundred and eighty gates were open, most of them 
on the lower tier, and simply represented the flow of the 
river at this time, as the dam had been allowed to fill with 
water several days before. The rush of the water coming 
out of these sluices made a roar like a small Niagara, and 
the water went dashing down the rapids below, in and around 
rocks, little islets, tumbling and tossing about with power 
enough, if harnessed, to turn all the mills Egypt or England 
will ever need. About five of " e upper gates were open in 
one place, and the way the water shot out into space as it 
sought the channel below was the prettiest sight I ever saw. 
We were really in the edge of Nubia, as Assouan marks the 
southern limit of Upper Egypt. Over on the little rocky 
islands below the dam were some Nubians living who could 
swim these strong roaring rapids as easily as a fish. I saw 
one Nubian have a fish three feet long that he was playing 
with in a pool of water. Above the dam were islands and 



356 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

palm trees with their tops sticking out of the water. The 
extent of the water surface in sight was not large; the im- 
mense quantity is gained by extending up the river so far. 
The Temple of Isis on the partly submerged island of Philae 
was visible, marking the length of the lake above with nu- 
merous islands nearer. Just the tops of rocky hills visible 
above the water. Out on the parapet of the dam at two places 
in crossing, on the lower side, little platforms were made to 
allow royalty a view of the wondrous whirl of rushing wat- 
ers from the side of the dam below. We lingered some time 
at these places looking at the dashing force of these waters 
in passing out of such large sluice ways. The sluices are 
lined with heavy granite ashlar or cast iron. We stationed 
ourselves near the cornerstone and watched the people gath- 
er. At 3 o'clock the firing of twenty shots from four can- 
non at the east end of the bridge announced the arrival of 
the Khedive of Egypt, the Duke and Duchess of Connaught 
(the King of England's brother) and many others on a spe- 
cial train from Assouan. The little trolley cars pushed by, 
gayly dressed Nubians came whizzing over the dam. Royalty, 
many ladies, all the Egyptian ministry, English generals and 
their invited guests all gathered near the great corner stone. 
The ladies wore elegant costumes, and all the gentlemen of 
royalty were clothed in full military array. Diamonds 
sparkled in the sunlight, and altogether under these ever 
cloudless skies of Africa it was a notable gathering. I was 
surprised to hear no music, although each night in Assouan 
an Egyptian band played nicely. About one thousand people 
were present; about one-half Europeans, mostly English and 
French, and the other half Egyptians. Among them were 
included these two rambling Americans, a correspondent of 
the New York Sun, and I think the American consul of 
Cairo. Over to the right on the slope of the hills sat about 
two thousand Egyptians, as motionless as sphinxes. After 
courteous bows and tip of the fingers hand-shaking, the cere- 
monies commenced. Not a word of prayer or a bit of 
music, simply a little formal address by Fakry Pasha, Min- 




DUKE AND DUCHESS OF CONNAUGHT A.ND KHEDIVE OF 

I.N ATTENDANCE AT OPENING OF ASSOUAN n\M. DEC. 1". 1902. 

First group of three. 



EGYPT 



EGYPT AND INDIA. 257 

ister of Public Works, and in response the Khedive replied 
in a few words, using the French language. Then the Duke 
of Connaught spoke a few moments, after which a silver 
trowel was handed to the Duchess of Connaught, to lay the 
stone with, and after that three cheers. Five of the great 
gates of the upper tier near these ceremonies had been belted 
with electric power, and just then the Khedive of Egypt, by 
using a silver key, turned on the electric current, and as 
these five gates swung open, the volume of water rushing 
from the dam made the very ground tremble, a surging and 
seething mass of water, throwing itself against the rocks 
below, with thundering reverberations as the spray dashed 
itself high in the air. 

There is a canal with five locks running just through the 
west edge of the dam by the side of this last stone laid. 
Then one of these lock gates, the largest single leaf gate in 
the world, was opened, and as the great bascule girders rose 
into the air, some boats decked out in gay colors passed 
through the canal. The opening of the greatest dam in 
the world was over. Royalty retired as twenty-one more 
discharges of cannon occurred, and we rode our two don- 
keys back to Assouan in the mystery of moonlight. 

We visited the granite quarries, where all the obelisks ana 
many pillars and the stone for a number of statues were 
quarried. Passing again through the Mohammedan cemetery 
back of Assouan, which covers more ground than the town 
does, and keeping straight out toward the east, we soon came 
to the old quarries. By easily traceable marks these large 
red granite blocks were split out of the quarry by wooden 
wedges. A tier of holes was cut into the rock in a row, 
wooden wedges were then fitted and saturated with water, 
simply splitting the rock out by the force of expansion. 

We were interested in looking at one obelisk partly cut 
out, and if this huge monolith had been finished it would 
have been the largest one in the world, as it measured nin«ty- 
five feet long and eleven feet square at the base. Perhaps 



258 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

some king intended to set up the largest obelisk and died 
before the work could be accomplished. 

As we were walking from quarry to quarry, a carriage 
drove up and a richly dressed gentleman in flowing robes 
of silk alighted, accompanied by several attendants and a 
few young men who were running along behind the carriage. 
Wondering who it was, I asked one of the young men, who 
could talk English. He replied, "He is the big padre of the 
Copts." I knew from his reply that he was the bishop of 
the Coptic church, residing in Cairo at the head of and rep- 
resenting the survival of the early Christian church once 
planted in Alexandria, but I fear only in form, letter and 
ceremony in its continuance. 

Over on some black craggy rocks were some birds as large 
as turkeys and white in color. They were simply buzzards 
with white feathers on them, beautiful to look at, as men 
and women are sometimes, yet repulsive in their aim and 
object. 

We rode away and could easily trace the causeway, over 
which these great stones were dragged to the Nile, as many 
of these monoliths of rock were transported hundreds of 
miles, and some were found in Palestine and Baalbec. We 
wended our way to the station and booked for Cairo. 

Our train left at 9 o'clock in the morning, and with ever 
varying interest I occupied the time all the day long in 
lmoking on the river, and the many steamers sailing away 
from Assouan, the people getting in and out of the train, 
the country stations full of bustle and throngs of queerly 
dressed people, and the large number of passengers getting 
off and on the train, traveling third class. 

In many of the villages in Upper Egypt thousands of the 
"fellaheen" live in mud houses not much larger than the 
prairie dogs occupy in Colorado, and their ever present pig- 
eon roost is almost as large as the house and always located 
on top of the dwelling. I could see their hens pecking and 
scratching, their babies crawling on all fours, the women 
cooking in mud bake ovens out of doors, and the men sit- 



EGYPT AND INDIA. 259 

ting around or asleep in some shady corner. In the air 
overhead the birds were flying, the sun was shining out of a 
cloudless sky, the air was stirred by soft summer breezes, 
like the rippling waves on a peaceful sea, yet inside our car 
there arose stifling clouds of dust, making us emit mournful 
sighs, yet we either had to travel or fly. 

As the train ambled along, I remembered how persistent 
the scarab sellers were at Thebes and Memphis in selling 
their (more than likely home manufactured) scarabs; then 
I wondered why these old Egyptians had scarabs put in their 
tombs at the time of their burial. The present value of a 
scarab is supposed to be in their antiquity, and because they 
were found in some tomb. I then asked myself why "a scarab 
was put in an Egyptian grave." As you know, it simply 
represents a beetle, and the old story, although often told, is 
sometimes new to a few. This is the story: The Egyptian 
beetle, as black as a crow and almost an inch long, would 
roll up a lump of clay on the brink of the Nile, after laying 
its eggs on the clay for a nucleus, until the lump wou'd be 
three or four times as large as the molder. Then, with un- 
wearied patience, he would roll this rissole up steep inclines, 
until it was beyond the level of the next annual overflow 
of the Nile, and in the edge of the desert would bury it in 
the sand. When his time came he'd die content, as he had 
provided for his successors. Out of all this came his mystic 
fame, and the old Egyptians came to regard him as an em- 
blem, not only as a creative power, but of the immortality of 
the soul. He became a hieroglyph and his meaning was "To 
Be and to Transform." His picture was sculptured on their 
temples, placed on the shoulders of their gods, painted on 
their sarcophagi and tombs, pictured on their jewels, worn 
by the living, and buried with the dead. No insect ever had 
such greatness or fame thrust upon him. It is easy for 
the Egyptian of today to carve out imitations, to embellish, 
to glaze them, and then feed them to some turkeys in the 
form of a bolus, and after digestion they will look as old 
and venerable as if they had laid with the dead in a tomb for 
thousands of years. 



260 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

The next morning to our surprise as we passed the site 
of Memphis, we saw that the lakes of water were gone, and 
the farmer was commencing on the dryest places to plant the 
seeds for a coming harvest. At 9 o'clock as we entered Cairo 
we were tired, dust-begrimed and hungry, having smothered 
twenty-four hours in a cage filled with dust. One day we 
visited the most interesting museum in the world, the one 
in Cairo. Words cannot convey to you my impression or 
an adequate description of this glimpse into the distant past, 
this touch of sight • with the features of men and women 
who lived thousands of years ago ; this sense of shortness 
of life, as I looked back over the almost countless genera- 
tions of men and women who have passed — just like a hair 
breadth of space for each one. 

Soon after entering the museum I went to the room where 
the Egyptian kings are, some of the greatest and many of 
the veritable ones of history. I found them. There lay 
the mummied body of Rameses the Great, known as II, the 
king who reigned sixty-six years about 1400 B. C. He was 
the Pharaoh reigning when Moses was born. He was the 
greatest builder of history, as we have seen in so many tem- 
ples where his cartouch and statue seem to be everywhere. 
He used the Israelites in his service to make brick, and in- 
creased their tasks, yet the straw was withholden by his suc- 
cessor, Menepthah, who was the Pharaoh of the Exodus, 
reigning about twenty years. There he lay, the greatest of 
Egyptian kings, with features almost perfect, of medium size, 
the mummified skin just about the color of Egyptians of to- 
day, his toes and toe nails as perfect as the day he died. His 
hair was gray and the cast of his face showed great deter- 
mination, boldness and energy. The last forty-six years of 
Kis reign was a time of peace, and he had millions of slaves 
dragging these great stones and erecting the greatest temples, 
statues and monuments in the world. He deified himself to 
become the Seostris of Egyptian history. On one side of his 
sarcophagus is the mummy of his father, Seti I, a man of 
pinched face, smaller, a countenance that would not partic- 



EGYPT AND INDIA. 261 

ularly interest any one. On the other side lay in his sar- 
cophagus (immense stone coffins) the mummy of Rameses 
III, the richest king of Egypt's history. We saw his tomb 
at Thebes (also the others) and on its walls were represented 
elegant gold and silver vases, shirts of mail, cushioned 
thrones and sofas. He died believing that his soul would 
come back and reoccupy his mummied body. 

Another king, Thotmes III, lay in his coffin and, like all 
the rest, was partly unwrapped. He was buried about 1600 
B. C. We saw priests, queens, kings — many of them with 
their names given, and wandered from room to room where 
many scores of mummies are to be seen. One man, evidently 
a priest, had a mass of beautiful hair and apparently died 
young. The queens all had distinctive feminine faces. All 
their mummy cases were here, some in delicate tints of color, 
all of them representing some form of life or event, either 
occurring in the life of the person or expected to after death. 

In one of the large rooms were many glass cases contain- 
ing jewels, rare chains and gems. In one case were the 
jewels of one queen discovered in 1894, who was buried in 
a tomb over four thousand years ago; a necklace of gold 
shells, ornaments for the breast, cosmetic boxes in cornelian, 
and many curious looking chains. It is useless to describe 
all I saw, as where one can make no comparison it is hard 
to convey an adequate description. I will simply mention 
that the mummies are the great attraction of the museum, 
yet there are old boats once used to carry dead kings across 
the Nile, boats and crew in gold and silver, mirrors of gilt 
bronze overlaid with gold leaf, and thousands of articles 
gathered out of the past. How interesting to look back 
thousands of years and see how these kings and queens lived, 
and by picture, inscription and writing learn something of 
their thoughts. 

We left the museum thinking how strange it was that 
these kings were buried in their rock tombs so many years 
ago, and now their bodies so wonderfully preserved by their 
skill and art of embalming are seen at this day and time. 



262 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

Then I remember that the papyrus used to grow in Egypt, 
and now it is not found there any more. Isaiah prophesied 
in Chapter 9:7 that the papyrus should wither and "be no 
more." Ezekiel also prophesied in the thirtieth chapter that 
God would "destroy the idols — there shall be no more a prince 
of the land of Egypt." Then in the chapter preceding this 
the prophet says : "I will make the land of Egypt utterly 
waste and desolate from the tower of Syene even unto the 
border of Ethiopia," all of which has been fulfilled, as the 
word Syene simply means modern Assouan, and all the 
quarrying done there was called Syene granite in ancient 
times. How wonderfully true all of the prophecies of the 
Bible are, and as all that relates to the past has been so sig- 
nally fulfilled, so will those prophecies that relate to the 
future, as all unfulfilled prophecy is simply written history. 

We drove to the railroad station and booked our passage 
to Port Said. There are many strange things carried out 
of Egypt, as on the train from Assouan I saw among the 
personal luggage ancient mummied aligators and crocodiles, 
canes made of hippopotamus hide, also riding whips, Abys- 
sinian and Soudan spears, and date palm lunch baskets. Of 
course these things were too large or long to get inside the 
parcels of luggage. We also picked up an extra satchel full 
of curious things too numerous to mention. 

Our train passed through the Land of Goshen, a beauti- 
ful fertile land, thickly settled, with many cattle, some 
sheep and goats, all either herded or "staked out." It was 
market day and it seemed that all the country people were 
gathering in the larger villages, with a little of all their 
products for sale. How picturesque they looked as we saw 
them hurrying along the country roads, afoot, astride of an 
ass or camel, many of them with a bit of something, to sell. 

As we left the lands overflowed by the Nile, it became 
desert, and except on the sides of a small canal, we were 
following along, there was no verdure or trees. This canal 
runs from the Nile to Port Said to supply that city, also 
Ishmalia, with fresh water. At Tel el Kirber, a small vil- 



EGYPT AND INDIA. 263 

lage, we were much interested in its surroundings and Eng- 
lish cemetery, as here a few years ago 14,000 English troops 
defeated the Turkish and Egyptian forces of 24,000, and ever 
after England has had a hold on Egypt, diplomatically called 
a suzerainty. We soon saw, off to the right, some low ridges 
of sand and an occasional ship sailing, with no water in 
sight, looking like phantom ships traversing over this desert 
waste. They were in the Suez canal, floating along like birds 
on the wing. At Ishmalia we changed trains, taking a narrow 
gauge road. 

Ishmalia is a small place, and its importance is in being 
a half-way station between Suez and Port Said, and in 
DeLesseps' time it was his headquarters when the canal was 
being excavated. Only a dreary waste of desert each side, 
with now and then an Arab tent or hovel, and a few trees 
planted along the canal. 

Dredgers are at work in the canal, gradually widening it 
so that in time two ships can pass, as now they can only do 
so at certain stations. We soon came to only a narrow 
strip of land, and at the left were great areas of salt or 
bitter water lakes, and there were thousands of snipe and 
ducks swimming around in large flocks. It was after dark 
before we arrived at Port Said, a city of over 25,000 popula- 
tion, and not a single thing of any kind — fruit, vegetables 
or grain — raised within many miles of the city. 

For nearly four days we were compelled to stay in Port 
Said before we could sail for India. Our accumulation of 
curious things in Egypt, curtains from Damascus, silk from 
Lebanon, a long list of many articles from Jerusalem, and 
with many things picked up in Europe, compelled us to box 
and bundle and ship on a Japanese freight steamer to Yoko- 
hama, 8000 miles across the seas from Port Said, costing us 
two English pounds sterling. 

Mission work is very discouraging, as the missionaries 
are not allowed to have any street meetings. Rents are very 
high and the city is as wicked as Sodom and Gomorrah ever 
were. A Mr. and Mrs. Locke, who have been there thirteen 



264 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

years, are doing the most in mission work. The British 
naval ships compel their men to attend church each Sunday, 
and they get all those who belong to no church when any 
warship is in the anchorage. The Peniel Mission seems to 
be educating or training some boys and girls. 

The men on American transport ships have the reputation 
of drinking more than those of other nations when they go 
ashore. We booked on the Arabia to Bombay of the Penin- 
sular and Oriental line, and were compelled to pay thirty- 
four pounds English sterling each, while others on the 
same steamer only paid thirty-eight pounds from London. 
We were much interested during our stay in Port Said in 
looking at the ships as they came and went, several each 
day from many of the nations. Some of them were loaded 
with soldiers, including a French, Russian and English ship. 

Promptly at noon the steamer hove its anchor and sailed 
Steamers are only allowed to sail four and one-half miles 
an hour through the Suez canal, and each steamer is required 
to have a pilot. 

We were sailing through the greatest gateway of the na- 
tions, one that all nations use who send any ships over the 
seas. I watched Port Said as we sailed away, one of the 
most peculiar cities of the world, made up from all nations, 
yet there are many French people living there. 

I asked the steward for a copy of the passenger list and 
was taken by surprise. There were on board three dukes, 
three duchesses, three earls, eight lords, seven sir-knights 
and fourteen titled ladies, to say nothing of thirty-seven 
army and navy officers, two countesses, one baron and one 
baroness. And there was a German prince as well. 

A London paper that came in by the way of Brindisi, being 
printed after the ship sailed from London, said there was 
never a ship on any sea before that sailed with as much 
royalty aboard as the Arabia. Had the London editor known 
who intended to get aboard the steamer at Port Said, he 
could have added to his list of royalty, "two children of 
THE KING." 



EGYPT AND INDIA. 265 

It was the last steamer leaving England whose passen- 
gers could reach India in time to attend the Delhi Durbar. 
This steamer's tonnage is about 8000 tons, consuming eighty 
tons of coal each day, and some days we sailed four hundred 
miles. 

Each hour of the day was full of interest, as we met other 
ships, passing dredgers at work, looking at the desert sands 
or salt lakes ; and it seemed wonderful to be gliding along 
with such a large ship, over such a narrow ribbon-like stretch 
of water. After sunset we passed Ishmalia, and into a large 
lake of deep water, and there anchored, while seven ships 
with electric lights in front almost as bright as searchlights, 
came from the canal toward Suez and passed by at intervals 
of a few minutes each. 

Mail boats have the preference, and these ships had been 
waiting for the Arabia. As I came on deck in the early 
morning light we were approaching Suez at the southern 
terminus of the canal. The place is not as important as Port 
Said, and quite away from the canal, as the open water of 
the Gulf of Suez commences here. 

As we sailed down the gulf I noticed only a few miles 
away a quite high mountain rising abruptly from the shore, 
with a connecting range of mountains running into the in- 
terior. This is the most northerly mountain in this part 
of Africa, and it is very striking in appearance. In the 
morning sunlight it shone forth in great brilliancy. Just a 
little to the north of this mountain and its range is another 
range of hills, forming between the two a little valley or 
passageway to the sea. Just here is the probable crossing 
place of the Israelites, the sea being several miles wide 
and quite deep. You will remember the story, as the Israel- 
ites were not allowed to travel the usual way of today, via 
Gaza, around the head of the Red Sea, but were told to "turn 
and encamp before Pihahiroth, between Migdol and the sea, 
over against Baal-zephon ; before it ye shall encamp by the 
sea." (Exodus 14:2.) 

The word Baal-zephon means a mountain or watch tower 



266 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

of the north, and without doubt refers to this tall mountain 
that I could see by the edge of the sea. 

The very word Suez literally means "destruction," and 
comes down in tradition from the past. About twelve miles 
from Suez, on the Asiatic side, is the well of Moses, still 
called by that name. From a further description in the books 
of Exodus and Numbers, the entire account agrees with this 
place as the probable crossing. About noon I walked on the 
promenade deck. We were on the Red sea, ploughing our 
way along in the center, the entire width of the sea being 
about sixty miles. The contour of the mountains in both 
Asia and Africa is peculiar and handsome. The weather 
was cool, even real chilly. There was just a suspicion of 
fleecy clouds, floating lazily over land and sea. Toward 
evening we saw Mt. Sinai, but only its top, as there were 
other mountains in front, with an altitude of 8500 feet, while 
Mt. Sinai is about 1000 feet lower and only visible through 
a gap in the mountains at one place. These mountains are 
several miles inland from the Red Sea, the region in front 
being called the "Wilderness of Sin." Over in Africa, fac- 
ing Mt. Sinai, are some remarkable looking mountains, tall, 
sharp, treeless, abrupt and clothed in various colors, beautiful 
to look at because of a non-resemblance to other mountains. 
At sunset, with Mt. Sinai still in sight and all of its sur- 
rounding mountains aglow with tinted colors, and these 
beautiful African mountains standing like sentinels against 
the clear, crimson sky, there came to me a feeling of the 
perfect and eternal fitness of things, of how God chooses 
the very best places to manifest Himself in, as I know of 
no place so inspiring, no country or mountains so untram- 
meled by any of the arts of man, no region where the scenery 
is more grand than in and about this Sinai peninsula. 

On this continent of Asia, the greatest in the world, con- 
nected with Europe as one, facing Africa, and looking out 
toward the islands of the seas and beyond to America, was 
the Law proclaimed from this mountain top. Could there 
be a more fitting place? 



EGYPT AND INDIA. 267 

It is said that to the north of Sinai is a sloping plain, suf- 
ficiently large for all the hosts of Israel to assemble on; 
and as I again looked at its rounded peak, with such jagged 
mountains in front, all lit up with the afterglow of a brilliant 
sunset, there came to me a consciousness that God "doeth 
all things well," and by selecting this mountain top for the 
birth of Christianity and the promulgation of law for people 
to live by, was and is today the grandest spot on all the 
earth. 

A ragged gem from nature's mold, 
A mountain peak of beauty untold; 
A history far more sublime 
Than peaks of any other clime. 

Read the story in Exodus, how one morning there came a 
cloud "and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud," and 
out of the cloud was lightning and thunder, and all Israel 
trembled at the sound. Then the Lord descended in fire 
within "sight of all the people, and smoke ascended from 
the mountain as it shook." 

It is a beautiful as well as a wonderful story, as all Bible 
stories are, and still more interesting as the story unfolds, 
until the law and the commandments were given. 

Only three days' journey from Mt. Sinai is the ancient 
site of Ezion-Geber, at the head of the eastern arm of 
the Red Sea, called the Gulf of Akabar. It was at one 
time the southern limit of Israel, and where Solomon sent 
out his ships after the gold of Ophir. 

On Friday, the 19th, there was no land in sight except at 
sunset. We saw a few mountain peaks in Africa. Only saw 
two ships during the day and a few open boats far away, 
probably containing pirates. The waiters at the table all 
put on white, and the "punkers" were started to keep us 
cool while eating, as the weather was getting warm. On 
Saturday, the 20th, we were still sailing down the Red Sea 
with no land in sight. We were opposite Mecca, in Persia, 



268 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

and its seaport. Saw one steamer and one warship. Weather 
very hot. 

We were nearing the southern end of the Red Sea, with 
the Isle of Perim in sight. On this lower end of Arabia the 
famous Mocha coffee is raised. 

At 10 o'clock Sabbath services (formal ones) were held 
in the first-class saloon; but few of the royalty were present, 
compared with the number on board. Those who attended, 
especially the ladies, had on many diamonds and jewels to 
shine and gleam in the morning light, with trailing dresses 
to match. 

Toward evening we came to anchor off Aden, a British 
settlement at the southern end of Arabia, strongly fortified, 
commanding the entrance to the Red Sea. Flags were fly- 
ing on the several ships in the harbor, all in honor of the 
Duke of Connaught and his escort of British war vessels, 
and the Duke came over on the Arabia to call on the Ger- 
man Prince (Queen Victoria's grandson) and the Duke of 
Marlborough. Seventeen mail clerks came on board as the 
Arabia had two thousand sacks of mail to sort before reach- 
ing Bombay, most of it to be scattered through India. Their 
usual amount (weekly) is nine hundred, this being Christ- 
mas time — hence the increase. 

I never will forget the sunset that Sabbath evening, as it 
dropped out of sight over behind the Abyssinian mountains 
and seemingly in the midst of an aureole of light, fleecy 
clouds, tinting them in colors of pink and amber. Even 
royalty paused in their walks back and forth, to look at this 
afterglow of sunset, nowhere more marked and beautiful than 
when seen as it reflects from Africa's shore. The mountains 
are abrupt and jutting almost on the shore at Aden, which 
is an island. There are more British troops stationed here 
than in Gibraltar. Many Nubians and Abyssinians came in 
small boats from the African shore and gathered around the 
steamer to barter and trade. In the evening the ship sailed 
away, Aden being half way from Port Said to Bombay. 

I arose at 3 o'clock Monday morning and ran out on deck 



EGYPT AND INDIA. 269 

to see that famous constellation of stars known as the South- 
ern Cross. It was there, four bright stars, lying in the form 
of a cross on an angle to the east. With delight I viewed 
the sight, and caught another throb of nature's love, from 
those southern skies above, lifting me up with a quickening 
pulse to a plane where harmony reigns. Wonderful stars, 
as with noiseless tread they have paced the heavens since 
the world began, an emblem of love to all mankind, as it is 
our Saviour's cross hanging in the sky. I paced the deck, my 
soul all aglow — a season of rapture I enjoyed here below. 

No land nor ships did we see all through this day of Mon- 
day. Tuesday came and the same result, with not a ship 
or land to see, as we went rushing along over this Arabian 
sea. Wednesday came and still not a ship nor land in sight. 
A few flying fish were flying about like the flutter of royalty 
on the promenade deck. Thursday came being Christmas 
Day, and we had plum pudding served on a tray. 

I heard a great noise and clamoring shouts, and I walked 
aloft to see what it was about. Each day a coterie of the 
common people had been betting on the running of the ship, 
men and women getting much excited, as the stakes ran up 
to about twenty pounds ($100) each day. Their mode of 
procedure was to auction off the choices to the highest bid- 
der. This being Christmas Day, some of the Dukes, Earls 
and Lords took part in this gambling scheme — hence the 
uproar, and the pool ran up to ioo pounds ($500). One 
lord won most of it and one of the common people said to 
me, "The big guns were too much for us." 

A strange medley of people were aboard. There was a 
Church of Scotland preacher and he used to sing panto- 
mime songs, drink beer, and smoke. One day I walked by 
the dining saloon and all the servants of the royalty and no- 
bility were dining or rather at "Tiffin," as everybody calls the 
noonday meal, and I heard them talking about their employers 
(several dozen of them) and I wondered if their masters' ears 
burned. Their other talk was about diplomacy, pools, rank 
and style — simply a reflex of what they hear. 



270 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

Each day the weather grew warmer and we were soon in 
the midst of summer heat. 

Early Friday morning, the 27th, as I came on deck, I saw 
we were entering the harbor of Bombay. Many ships were 
lying at anchor, and there were large European looking 
buildings on the shore. The nobility had a special train char- 
tered to carry them to Delhi, therefore the first two small 
steamer loads to the custom house landing were entirely filled 
with themselves, their servants and their luggage. About 
nine o'clock we landed, passed the custom house, by Elmer 
paying 70 cents as duty on his camera, and accompanied by 
a returning Methodist missionary hired a gharry and started 
off for the railroad station. On our way we purchased a topi 
each, to protect us from the hot, burning sun, called on the 
Methodist minister, found Bishop Thoburn there and was in- 
troduced to him, and af+er a chat proceeded to the station. 
We soon found that the fast Punjaub mail train leaving at 4 
o'clock in the afternoon, our train for Delhi, was full, every 
seat taken, and the management refused to put on any more 
cars. We purchased tickets for the next train, leaving at nine 
o'clock that evening. 

We drove to a market and walked through to see the 
fruits. We found guavas as large as oranges, mangoes, 
plums, apples, bananas, grapes, oranges, lemons, and other- 
fruits I know not their name. The season was finished on 
the custard apples, which is called a delicious fruit. We then 
ordered our gharry to drive to the Towers of Silence, where 
the Parsees deposit their dead. Our first impressions of 
India were peculiar, unlike any other country. The two most 
commonplace things in all the world are seen all over the 
streets, yet you notice them not because they are so common. 
One is the little satin-skinned, fawn-colored, hump-backed 
ox, drawing carts everywhere, the other is nothing but a 
crow, small but blue. The reason you keep looking at these 
things is that the ox has a hump and the crow is blue; and 
there are troops of them all alike all over India. The streets 
are like a patch of tulips, orange, red, flaming vermilion, cherry 



EGYPT AND INDIA. 271 

color, emerald and brown, in either turban or costume, jost- 
ling by in endless throng. Then there are women passing by 
dressed in satin, colored drawers, or the next may be cherry 
colored, or green, shining like a grasshopper; or the next 
woman with only a mantle of the brightest purple, drawn 
diagonally across the body from the breast to the hip, and 
wrapped around in this or some other bright color unseen 
in any other land. There are no such hues of color in any 
other country as are worn here by men and women. One has 
to come to India to see them. Then your western ideas are 
rudely shocked by groups of men stalking by entirely naked 
except a very small loin cloth, yet they all seem to be ver- 
itable children of the sun, basking in its rays, and their arms, 
legs and bodies all shine like polished bronze. 

We alighted from our gharry at the entrance to the grounds 
where the Parsees (the richest and best educated people 
of India) deposit their dead. For about a mile we had been 
climbing an upward grade, in places quite steep, until we were 
on Malabar Hill, near the sea, and about four miles from the 
business center of Bombay. Accompanying us was a doctor 
of the English army, on furlough, a native of India, of Indian 
parentage, and in his official service stationed on the Gold 
Coast of Western Africa. At the bottom of a long flight of 
stone stairs we met an attendant, and because we had no ad- 
mission tickets, which are obtained of the secretary of the 
Parsee society, we were denied any further entrance in a posi- 
tive and emphatic manner. We intimated to the doctor that 
a little money would reverse his ideas, and after he talked 
to him in their Indian language, we were allowed to enter. 

Ascending the stone stairway we came into a beautiful park 
or garden with curving graveled pathways. Following our 
attendant along one of these walks, we soon came in sight of 
a large, white, windowless building, with no roof in sight, as 
high as two stories and circular in appearance. 

I saw a stone parapet around the outer edge of the entire 
top. On this parapet sat a row of vultures, larger than tur- 
keys, not over a foot apart on the average, looking sleek and 



272 A CAL1F0RNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

fat and as solemn as a row of owls. Two other buildings not 
far away, built in the same manner, had other rows of vul- 
tures around their tops, looking well-fed and satisfied. Each 
bird, apparently, had nothing to do but sit and sun itself, 
while perched upon the crest of these parapets. 

Our attendant led us into a little yard, and directing our 
attention to a model, about ten feet in diameter, began his 
explanation: "You see here thirty places that we lay the 
bodies on," showing us the top of the model divided into 
two circular rows of grooves, fifteen in each row, one above 
the other, all sloping towards the center. In the center is a 
large round hollow space. I asked him, "Where do the bones 
go to?" He replied: "As we need the space we brush the 
bones into that hollow in the center, which runs down through 
the building; then there are four drains leading out into the 
yard, filled with charcoal. We had one body this morning, 
and laid it there," indicating with a forefinger the nearest 
building where the thickest row of vultures sat. The doctor, 
true to the profession, wanted to climb the building, and look 
in at the top, but the attendant said, "Except the body carriers 
no one is allowed on those buildings, not even the relatives 
of the dead." About one hundred bodies each month are thus 
laid away on these "Towers of Silence." As these vultures 
swoop down on the body there is nothing but the skeleton left 
in a few minutes, to bleach and brown in a tropical sun until 
that groove is wanted again. Then all that is left of rich or 
poor, of old or young, is gathered in the central well, until 
some day when the resurrection will occur. 

The grounds are beautiful, birds are singing, trees and 
lovely flowers are all over the rolling, sloping surface of Mala- 
bar Hill, with flowering shrubs and graceful towering palms — 
a vision of beauty, yet marred by five stone buildings sur- 
mounted by groups of loathesome vultures, with a few circling 
in the air. 

We retraced our steps and paused by the side of a small 

chapel at the entrance, where their sacred fire of incense and 

sandal wood is never allowed to die out, and the final funeral 




VULTURES WAITING PARSER FUNERAL 

MALABAR HILL. BOMBAY 



EGYPT AND INDIA. 273 

services of their dead is held, but were not allowed to enter. 
However, the attendant allowed us to climb some stone steps 
leading to a porch of the chapel, where we could look across 
the glimmering ocean waves toward the setting sun, with 
the entire city of Bombay, its harbor and shipping in full 
view ; and in the distance a little farther inland are some 
bold, beautiful mountains, called the "Ghats" — a small part 
of "Picturesque India." 

In Bombay, a city of about 800,000 population, there are 
nearly 50,000 Parsees, and in all the rest of India only about 
25,000 more. When Persia was conquered by the Mohamme- 
dans about 1200 years ago these Parsees' ancestors fled from 
their native land of Persia. Their religion was founded by 
Zoroaster, and by tradition it is said he was a disciple of 
Daniel, the great Hebrew Prophet. They are a remarkable 
people, as white in color as Europeans, speak English fluently, 
most of them very wealthy and very charitable. Most people 
in writing call them "Fire Worshipers," which is a mistake. 
They are simply Theists and regard God as an emblem of 
glory and spiritual life. 

When a Parsee prays, he either faces the sun, or some 
fire — symbols of Deity, and one of the sights of Bombay is to 
see a group of Zoroastrians praying at sunset. With Parsees, 
earth, air, water and fire are their sacred elements, which 
easily explains their method of disposing of their dead. No 
contact with the earth, even the drainage purified by a char- 
coal filter ; no fire to burn, nothing left to mold in the air, 
and no burial in water. One of the towers is used for sui- 
cides, and for those who die in hospitals, thus coming in con- 
tact with no other people. Another tower is used by one 
family and the other three are used by the two sects of 
Parsees, the larger one using two. 

The men dress like Europeans, only they wear a tall, slop- 
ing, shiny, black cap, and in the back part of the cap there 
is a place to carry a handkerchief. The ladies dress very 
handsomely, and many of their silk saris are made in China, 



274 A CALiFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

then embroidered by hand in India, and costing from one to 
five hundred dollars each. 

Near Malabar Hill are many handsome villas and bunga- 
lows of the wealthy merchants of Bombay. As we passed 
down and out of the entrance, another group of vultures were 
resting in the top of a small palm tree, waiting and watching 
for another Parsee funeral. 

The first Hindu temple we saw in India, and the finest in 
Bombay, is near this entrance. We drove back to Bombay 
looking at the old and the new, here a fine European looking 
residence or store, and by its side a low, squalid, thatched 
hut, occupied by half naked natives. A city full of incongrui- 
ties, of surprises at every turn, and thousands of people swept 
away each year by the bubonic plague. The trees looked 
strange to us, and in vacant spaces are the banyan and ever- 
green mango trees, the one with its thousands of brown root- 
lets reaching towards the ground, the other just coming into 
bloom for next season's crop of delicious mangoes. 

Bombay has in one of its suburbs, one of the most singular 
hospitals in the world, where aged and infirm animals are 
taken in and cared for. North of Bombay near the mouth of 
the river Tapti, in the city of Surat, are three or four more 
hospitals to care for sick dogs and animals of all sorts, worn 
out or old and feeble. And in one of these hospitals there is 
a ward set apart where bugs, fleas, lice and other vermin are 
kept and cherished, all supported by Hindu charity. 

At nine o'clock that evening, with all of our luggage, and in 
the finest depot in India, costing 300,000 pounds sterling, amid 
the hurrying crowds of all sorts of people, we boarded our 
train for Delhi, over one thousand miles away. 

As we rode away in our second class compartment we no- 
ticed that all the long distance travelers had bundles of bed- 
ding and usually one whole seat, long enough to lie down on 
at full length, which is considered one sitting. It was warm 
and we laid down on the cushioned seats running lengthwise 
of our compartment, having plenty of room to stretch out, yet 
getting chilly toward morning. 



EGYPT AND INDIA. 275 

Early next morning the sun rose clear, and I looked out to 
see something of India. I expected to see an almost treeless 
country. On the contrary I saw many trees, scattered all over 
the fields, many of them the large, glossy-leaved mango tree, 
just coming into bloom. The ride through the country was 
an interesting one. We saw monkeys gamboling in the trees, 
flocks of different colored parrots, wild peacocks, gazelles, and 
different kinds of deer. I saw no wild flowers and not many 
cultivated ones. The crops after the summer rains, which 
they call the "monsoon season," had gathered. Not much 
was growing, except in some districts where irrigation from 
the rivers could be done, or small pieces where the natives 
could pump water with their oxen. 

The gauge of these Indian roads is very wide, and measures, 
I think, five and one-half feet. Many iron ties are used, 
and the fences have iron posts, as there is a white ant that 
eats up any wood that touches the ground. Toward evening 
we crossed one of the sacred rivers of India, quite a large 
one. The pepul tree, very sacred to the Hindus, we saw here 
and there, and the neem tree. In some places we passed 
through regular jungles of large leafed trees, bushes, tall grass 
and various thickets of trees, the home of the panther, leopard 
and tiger. Herds of wild deer became a common sight out in 
the fields, as the Hindus kill nothing, not even their cattle, 
for fear that the spirit of their grandmother or some other re- 
lation has come back to earth again and lives in some ani- 
mal, bird or monkey. At night we camped down again on 
our train, but we were getting north in India, and suffered 
with the cold. In the morning as I looked out the country 
was broken, and small, sharp hills were in sight. Villages 
appeared all the time, as the population of India is immense. 
We crossed the Jumna river, a tributary of the Ganges, and 
at all these rivers one peculiar feature is that men are seen 
washing on their banks, as men do much washing in India. 
At Tundia Junction we left the train, waiting until evening 
before we took another one. Here we went to the English 
church, having a good service. It is simply astonishing to see 



276 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

the large number of natives traveling third class. They come 
to a station early, camp down on the platform and wait for 
their train, time being no object to them. Most of the cars 
in each train are third class, and as the train arrives they fill 
those cars sometimes like sardines in a box, with their bun- 
dles and bedding. Another peculiar thing — all these men and 
women carry vessels to drink out of. The Hindus carry brass 
and the Mohammedans copper, and clean them very often. 
Each vessel will hold about two quarts, and you will see them 
on the streets, in the country and everywhere. If only one 
article is in their possession it is likely to be either this brass 
or copper water vessel. 

Since leaving Bombay at every important town or junction, 
as we approached Northern India, all these people were roped 
off and a doctor examined them by feeling of their bodies, 
to see if they had the bubonic plague. We were not examined 
on the other cars, only to look at us and occasionally to feel 
of our pulse. All the Indian cars have an extra projecting 
side reaching down a foot to about the center of the windows, 
to keep the hot sun out in the summer time. 

Again that night as our train rolled along to Delhi we suf- 
- fered severely with the cold, and as we arrived we purchased 
some bedding and like all Indian travelers, ever after carried it 
with us. 

On alighting in the Delhi station, we found it trimmed with 
evergreens. Many flags were flying; our flag and the British 
were on each side of the Viceroy's flag over the main entrance, 
and platforms erected were covered with red cloth. It was 
near morning, and what a scene. No hotel accommodations, 
everything full at about twenty-five dollars a day. We camped 
out the night in the station, as hundreds of others did, and 
thousands of natives were sleeping outside, rolled up in blan- 
kets. We checked our baggage in the parcel room and started 
out to walk in the early morning light. The city was all astir, 
throbbing with life and motion everywhere. As we walked 
along there loomed up on one side of the street several ele- 
phants, attended by their keepers, gathering for the parade. 



EGYPT AND INDIA. C77 

We passed through a triumphal arch and in front of thousands 
of seats erected before a large Mohammedan mosque called 
Jama Masjid, from which all the royalty were to witness the 
parade, and a short distance away in sight is a vacant area of 
land of perhaps two hundred acres. I wish I had power to 
describe to you something of the scene before us in and 
about this area of land, on the street leading to the mosque 
and on a parallel street not far away (the most famous street 
in Delhi, called Chandni Chonk), from nine to eleven o'clock 
on the morning of December 29th, 1902. On the streets lead- 
ing thereto was a continual passage of landaus and carriages 
first and second class, tongas, carts drawn by oxen,trotting 
along; English carts, rickashaws, judkas, tum-tums and 
gharrys. All the barouches and first class carriages had 
mounted outriders waving their pennants and I saw a hand- 
some tally-ho drawn by six camels, a barouche by four, and a 
carriage by one camel, all trotting along like horses. Riders 
on bicycles were about as thick in the throng as commas in 
this narrative. All these conveyances were continually empty- 
ing their loads of Europeans and Indians of rank to occupy 
these seats ; they were dressed in all the colors of a rainbow, 
sparkling with jewels, pearls and diamonds in the bright sun- 
light. Hundreds of native policemen and soldiers were keep- 
ing the multitude of natives off the streets in order to let the 
conveyances pass. On this vacant area fronting one of the 
streets, were one hundred and sixty-eight elephants and their 
keepers. Each elephant was dressed in robes of gold cloth, 
velvet or carpet rugs of great value, and on top of these 
costly trappings the elephants wore howdahs of silver, gold and 
wood. The keepers were making the elephants kneel down 
and Indian dignitaries dressed in their gold and silver em- 
broidered flowing robes of all colors were, by the aid of a 
ladder, ascending to a seat or seats in the howdahs. 

Many thousands of natives were gathering on all sides and 
along the line of the march of two or three miles. The boom- 
ing of twenty-one cannon at the railroad station announced 
the arrival of Lord Curzon and party — the Viceroy of India. 



278 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING, THE GLOBE. 

Meanwhile thousands of troops, both native and English, with 
batteries of artillery were placed in rows on each side of the 
line of march. We secured a fairly good position in front of 
the natives, as we had been long enough in India to observe 
that Europeans were allowed to go almost anywhere, except 
into reserved seats, while the natives were beaten back, some- 
times with whips, and ordered around in a peremptory way. 
Another salute of twenty-one guns from the front near the 
railroad station was a signal that the Duke and Duchess of 
Connaught had arrived on their special train. 

All the Rajahs of India were at the station in waiting to re- 
ceive these two royal representatives, the Viceroy of India 
and the king of England's brother. About fifty or sixty 
elephants, those we saw in the morning, were in waiting to 
carry all this royalty, thus commencing the day's parade from 
the station. We were surrounded with great multitudes of 
Indian people, wearing turbans of various colors — mostly red, 
white, green and yellow — coats and frocks of all colors, some 
of them brighter than the feathers of a peacock. Then again 
in and among this throng were hundreds of natives with only 
a few yards of cotton on and nothing on their legs, many of 
them barefoot, but most of them wearing sandals. Every 
house top, old roof and improvised seat was covered with this 
wonderful, quivering, surging and kaleidoscopic mass of hu- 
manity. 

The parade came in sight with a whole squadron of mounted 

lancers carrying red and white pennants, each rear rank 

carrying swords only; then an elephant with a silver howdah 

like a throne on his back containing Lord and Lady Curzon. 

This elephant's covering, a gold brocaded cloth, cost about 

$3000. Over their heads was an umbrella made of gold (a 

sign of royalty in India), worth as much more. Then came 

another monstrous elephant covered with jewels, sparkling 

like electric lights as the bright sunshine caught them, on 

mountings worth thousands of dollars, surmounted by a 

golden howdah, and upon its seat the Duke and Duchess of 

Connaught, wearing the same pleasing look as we saw on 




STATE ENTRY, DELHI, 

I- 1 c. J '. 



EGYPT AND INDIA. 279 

them at the opening of the great dam 800 miles up the Nile. 
Then all the Rajahs of India, about 100 of them, came, seated 
on a double row of elephants, dressed in gold cloth on silver 
and gold howdahs. Elephants and rulers of these many native 
states were dressed in jewels, silver bells, great head dresses 
on some of the elephants worth thousands of dollars. The fine 
carpets, the gold cloth, pearls, diamonds and wealth displayed 
as these fifty or sixty elephants passed was like a dream — a 
pageant unequaled in the history of the world. The howdahs 
were of every pattern — high and low, long and short, of either 
silver or gold, draped in yellow, red, purple or blue, and some 
in green. Most of the elephants had long silver chains hang- 
ing from their massive heads, jingling with a musical ring at 
every step. Gaily dressed men with maces walked alongside 
and attendants stood at the back of the howdahs, daintily 
dressed, holding bright colored umbrellas over the heads of 
these rich Rajahs of India. The covering of one elephant 
was one mass of jewels and pearls, and even their long tusks 
had wide rings of silver and gold fitted on them, and many of 
their tusks were painted with bright stripes of color. One 
elephant was encircled with a string of silver bells and he rang 
them with his trunk. As all this array of elephants and roy- 
alty reached the 168 elephants facing them — simply the reti- 
nue of the rajahs — then the retinue elephants saluted the 
others with their trunks and fell into line, making about 220 
elephants loaded with people riding along. No country but 
Asia and no part of any country but India could present such 
a dazzling array of wealth. Such magnificent elephants, 
Jumbo in size, bedecked and surmounted with many of the 
costliest jewels in the world. 

That evening, rather than pay such exorbitant hotel rates, 
we purchased tickets to Amritsar, 300 miles to the northwest 
of Delhi. Instead of shivering with cold we could now sleep, 
as we had our bedding and could turn our part of the com- 
partment into a place for sleeping at any time. 

The next morning as we were passing Umballa we saw off 
to the north some of the outlying foothills of the Himalaya 



280 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

mountains. Most of these plains in this part of India are 
under irrigation from great canals, some of them one or two 
hundred miles long. Out of the Jumna are three canals, and 
the Ganges is taken out in canals at Hurdmar, where there are 
four thousand miles of main canal and its laterals. The mon- 
soons are sometimes uncertain in India, and even if a large 
quantity of rain falls, it is midsummer and extremely hot, 
and under these conditions after the 'rain ceases the land may 
dry out before their crop matures. Monsoon does not mean 
heavy wind, and only lasts for three months, usually com- 
mencing about the middle of June, when the prevailing winds 
veer around to the southwest, with rain, often drenching 
rains, until these plains are a vast sheet of water in all the 
low lying places. Yet like some other countries, in portions 
of India the rainfall is only about two inches each year. I 
refer to the section near Persia, and away from the mountains. 
Then again over in Burmah and south of Assam is a section 
where there is about five hundred inches of rain each year, 
the heaviest rainfall in the world. Eastern India has more 
rain, as Calcutta will average sixty inches or more. Western 
India is where it forgets to rain at times, and away from the 
large rivers of the north there is not much water for irri- 
gation. 

Just after dark we arrived at Amritsar, a city of over a 
hundred thousand population, with large trees along the 
streets, and much of the city's surroundings park-like in ap- 
pearance. We engaged rooms at the Dak bungalow and soon 
discovered the custom in India, as our rooms had only bed- 
steads and a mattress, each guest being expected to bring 
and use his own bedding. The rooms were large, and fur- 
nished elegantly, in Indian style, and as we retired Elmer 
laughed at me because I looked under my bed to see if any 
of the deadly poisonous cobra snakes were in sight. We were 
in the largest and wealthiest city in the Punjab district in 
India, a land whose history is full of romance ; a city which 
is one of the commercial gateways to the great elevated table 
lands of Central Asia. Being not far from the tallest moun- 



EGYPT AND INDIA. 281 

tains in the world, and in midwinter, we found it very chilly. 

After eating breakfast in the Dak bungalow, where the wait- 
ers all wear their turbans, we sauntered out to see one of the 
most picturesque cities in Northern India. The cold air 
seemed to touch the marrow in our bones ; a dark dust colored 
haze, surmounted by long, ridgy, storm looking clouds, filled 
the entire arc of space above. We walked across a park, yet 
the grass was getting parched with thirst, the paths and road- 
ways were smothered with dust, large trees, in bunches and 
rows, and in foliage fair, lifted their towering tops into the air. 
Flocks of the ever-present little blue crows were scurrying 
around, while some were sitting on the ground — all were talk- 
ing with that peculiar twirl that crows and sometimes chil- 
dren love to do. 

Passing over the railroad tracks near the station on an ele- 
vated bridge, we crossed another park and came to a city 
gate opening into a long central avenue or street, full of busi- 
ness and people, unlike any other street in any other country 
or city except India. The first place we entered was a large 
carpet and rug-weaving manufactory, where beautiful Indian 
rugs are woven and colored with native dyes. The manager, 
who could speak English, received us very courteously and 
showed us a rug about twelve feet square, in a hand loom 
and not yet finished, where four young men had been working 
on it one and one-half months. In this establishment are no 
looms, all worked by hand, where several hundred boys and 
young men weave some of the fines rugs in the world. These 
rugs are worth in Amritsar when finished about ten rupees 
per square yard. The looms were strung with cotton threads, 
then each boy or man, under a director, would tie in the dif- 
ferent colored wool threads, clipping them with a knife large 
enough to reap grain with, and then comb down the stitches 
with wooden combs. The boys' wages are about a dollar and 
a half each month, while the men receive from ten to fifteen 
cents each day. The usual conventional Turkish and Persian 
designs are used, yet in this establishment nearly all their 
product is shipped to a New York firm and a special designer 



282 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

is employed to suit American ideas and taste. The manager 
showed us many rugs ready for shipment. 

Kashmir people do the weaving, whole families knowing 
nothing else from childhood to old age. 

Not many of the workers were present as many of them are 
Mohammedans and they were expecting to see the new moon 
the coming evening, and that would end their fast of the 
Ramadan. 

The manager said : "My men expected to see the new 
moon last evening, but were disappointed." "Suppose it is 
cloudy and they cannot see the new moon tonight?" I asked. 
"Somebody, will see it in Calcutta or elsewhere and tele- 
graph," was the reply. It was a holiday among the Moham- 
medans. Stringing flags along the street, erecting fireworks 
and dressing up in holiday attire ; yet there were hundreds of 
men walking along almost naked. Calves, cows, oxen and 
buffaloes were walking along the streets just the same as the 
people, looking in the doors, and nibbling what they could 
find to eat, and some of them I saw lying down chewing their 
cud of contentment. All had humps on their backs, and as I 
passed along I took hold of their horns or placed my hand on 
their rumps. 

A real Indian city entirely eastern in its appearance. 

There are many Indian women who dress only in colored 
trousers, holding trousered babies on their hips, wearing rings 
in their ears, pearl ornaments in their noses, silver in their 
blue-black hair and enormous bracelets on their ankles. As 
you look down the street you will see all colors on those that 
are dressed at all. Orange shaded to lemon, the brightest 
of red to an emerald or blue, pink, crimson and all the fa- 
miliar colors until it began to seem to us that we had been 
used to such costumes all our lives. 

We also visited the other two large Indian rug or carpet 
weaving mills, as there are three, all hand looms, and saw 
them working. 

Amritsar is the holy city of the Indian people, called the 
"Sikhs," and its name means "the pool of immortality." These 



EGYPT AND INDIA. 283 

people came into history and notice about 1500 A. D. They 
do not worship idols nor use tobacco in any form, neither do 
they shave or cut their hair, and are the best native soldiers 
in the British army. They have a golden temple in Amritsar 
and we visited it. Walking through the city like many east- 
ern cities, with no sidewalks, dodging the ox-carts, running 
around their sacred cattle, and elbowing our way along, we 
came to a little lake ana out on an island only large enough 
to build on it the "Golden Temple." There are gates and a 
paved causeway leading to the temple. We could wear no 
shoes, and not having any slippers large enough for me, I 
had to walk out to the temple in my stocking feet. The en- 
tire temple outside is the color of gold, not large. We were 
not allowed to go alone, one of their guards accompanying us. 
First they showed us a government ordinance whereby we 
were told in reading that we must be respectful and conform 
to the religious customs of the place. At the gate is a tablet 
recording a great miracle, how a great light from heaven fell 
before their holy book and was then withdrawn to heaven. 
We walked to the entrance and sitting there on the floor, 
without any chairs or stools, as all Indians do, were a few 
musicians twanging one-stringed mandolins and thrumming 
on tom-toms, making music lonely and scary enough to 
frighten crows away from a cornfield. Just beyond them sat 
some priests on the floor, under a canopy, and one of them 
read from their sacred book, called the Granth. Each Sikh 
believer brings an offering of flowers or coin. There are four 
doors of chased silver, and the temple is two stories high. In 
the first story is blue, red and gold, in frets and scrolls and 
flowers. We walked up stairs and those walls are finished the 
same, except there are studded mirrors, and some holy rooms. 
Only brooms of peacock feathers are kept to sweep the tem- 
ple with. All around the lake are palaces of stone and mar- 
ble belonging to the Sikh chiefs, who come here at times, and 
as we walked back, peddlers were offering all kinds of Indian 
goods for sale on the marble pavements, and some hump- 
backed cows were chewing their cuds and looking in one of 



284 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

the sacred doors. We wandered for hours up and down the 
narrow, crooked streets where all sorts of little stores stretch 
along either side of the street; here a store full of gay red 
Mohammedan slippers, there a yarn shop full of bunches of 
yarn of all colors ; damascened metal shops, copper and brass 
workers, gem cutters, where blocks of jade brought from 
Yarkand and Turkestan are made into jewel boxes, knife- 
handles, knifeblades, earrings and many other articles. I 
saw one woman have six rings hanging from each ear, about 
three inches in diameter. We saw men from the interior of 
Asia, hardy, rugged-looking people, and met a couple of men 
just coming in from Afghanistan, of full beard, wearing 
enormous turbans, and packing some blankets manufactured in 
Germany. That evening, amid throngs of people in the rail- 
road station we again booked our passage to Delhi, over 
another railroad and made up our beds on the train as usual. 
In the morning we were near the river Ganges, and saw some 
men in a field burning the body of a Hindu, or trying to, as 
where the Hindu people are poor and wood is high, they only 
burn them a very little and the dogs and hyenas get the rest. 
It was New Year's morning as we came into Delhi, the 
second time on a train crowded with people, and on each of 
the six railroads entering the one station were almost myriads, 
of people, as most of them came to see the Coronation ex- 
ercises. Our train was over one hour late, and at the Dur- 
bar, seven miles away, the exercises had already commenced. 
We tried to reach the scene, but were unable to, as the police 
were stopping all conveyances and the Durbar light railway 
had ceased running. We walked about two miles, hearing 
the one hundred and one guns as they were fired. There 
were eighty thousand troops, all the invited guests and one 
hundred thousand spectators. The price for everything was 
exorbitant. The light railway before only charged eight annas 
(16 cents) ; today was charging ten rupees ($3.33) as passage 
to the Durbar. Carriages were charging eight and ten dollars, 
many of them only gharrys, tum-tums, and carts drawn by 
oxen. From the appearance of the miles of roadway leading 



EGYPT AND INDIA. 285 

to the Durbar, with a continuous surging throng of people, 
it had all the people in Delhi, for I never saw such a crowd 
extending as many miles as we could see. 

Reaching a fork in the roads where all the returning Dur- 
bar people would have to pass we halted. Soon they came 
and for over two hours we looked at royalty, rajahs, and 
princes of India, some of them in carriages trimmed with 
gold and silver, wearing jewels and diamonds worth thous- 
ands of pounds, attended with liveried attendants, riding mag- 
nificient horses, some of them wearing helmets and carry- 
ing spears. Thousands of troops were marching along side 
avenues, with military bands of music. All the carriages had 
gaily dressed postillions. 

Interspersed on the side and between all this splendor were 
first, second and third class gharrys, hill-tongas, bullock 
carts drawn by hump-backed oxen, tum-tums, tally-hos drawn 
by four and six camels richly caparisoned, Judkas covered 
with gay rugs, and their ponies with bells jingling along. 
On both sides of the street were surging, moving masses of 
natives, dressed in the gayest colors under the sun, and thou- 
sands of them undressed, with arms and legs as brown as 
bronze, and shining in the sun like varnished work — all 
this, woven together, presented a scene that cannot be pro- 
duced in America or Europe. I never expect to see any other 
passing throng of such a character and color on this earth 
again. Tired and hungry we wended our way back to Delhi. 
All the hotels had adopted the American "sudden way" of 
getting wealthy, raising their prices to twenty dollars a day. 
Restaurants were nowhere to be found except at the rail- 
road station, and a few high priced ones along the camps. 
Down in the dirt and amid the swirling dust, there were 
thousands of native eating places and tens of thousands of 
Indian people buying the queer mixed up dishes of food, and 
the black coarse pancake looking like loaves of bread. A 
curious medley, of curious things in a curious land. 

Toward evening we purchased tickets to the art exhibition 
and entered the building where all European goods were 



286 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

kept out and only Indian goods allowed in the display. I 
saw a small diamond in a case. The attendant said it was 
worth $S,ooo, because it was of pink color. We came to a 
gold umbrella. It was marked 39,000 rupees, about $13,000. 
They are used on the howdahs as shelter from the sun, 
when riding on an elephant. We saw cashmere shawls 
worth $1000, of fascinating beauty; and one large cash- 
mere carpet woven in blue and gold with as delicate 
stitching as in the shawl, too fine to walk on. I saw 
howdahs trimmed in gold and silver worth $2,000— 
saddles to put on elephants' backs. In a glass case one 
rajah had on exhibition a table cover not over nine feet 
square, made entirely of precious stones, pearls, turquoises 
and rubies, and woven together in designs of flowers worked 
out in the different gems, and this table cover alone is valued 
at $50,000. I saw some chairs covered with gold, and one 
of them of beautiful design is worth 24,000 rupees or about 
$8,000. I saw door shutters inlaid with ivory, and ivory 
boxes, mantels and carved work in teak and sandal wood. 
We saw carpets 500 years old that came from royal houses 
in India, and the coloring was as perfect though worn, as 
the day it was woven. We saw many other carpets which 
in design, color and pattern would cause the average Ameri- 
can lady to want one, and then invite all her friends so they 
might see it. 

We ate supper on a raised platform at the exhibition res- 
taurant, where the food was served in dishes of Indian make, 
and as we munched away we noticed the walls and ceilings 
covered with Indian art muslin, rare carpets and beauty 
everywhere, could we but ask: Is this some dream, or a 
fairy picture, or a bit of some Arabian Nights come to stay, 
or is it a part of the real India of today? Of course, just like 
your state and county fairs where the largest pumpkins and 
squashes are brought in, so here the whole of India has been 
ransacked to get the best of everything — all forming a verit- 
able fairy scene, oriental in character, with a blend in color as 
harmonious as a rainbow and a skillful grouping of figures 



EGYPT AND INDIA. 287 

until a picture was formed that is not seen in any occiden- 
tal land. We wandered from room to room, each moment 
catching something to charm, as fast as eye and thought 
could grasp, and then only in part, as the whole was too vast 
to catch in one evening's walk. The entire exhibit had a 
commercial value of about $8,000,000 American money. 
The next morning we took the Durbar railway, and as there 
were no Durbar exercises, we stopped at the polo grounds 
to see the nobility play polo, then went out to the Durbar 
camp. Immediatly around the Durbar center is a level plain, 
large enough to review fifty thousand troops, or perhaps 
more. We rode back to Delhi, nearly all of the seven miles 
through one vast sea of tents, the largest area of them I ever 
saw at one time. That evening we purchased tickets to 
Lucknow, a train starting about midnight, and started out to 
see the fireworks. Nobody knows how many people gathered 
to witness the great display. There may have been two hun- 
dred thousand. I never saw such a multitude on any oc- 
casion before. For two hours all sorts of carriages and 
carts were trying to bring the guests who had purchased 
seats, as there were thousands of them erected for the grand 
elephant parade, and now used for the fireworks. The po- 
licemen kept driving back the natives, but Europeans were 
allowed to go unheeded. We walked to the seats as soon as 
the fireworks commenced, which the guard invited us to 
take. As the glare of the rockets and set pieces lit up the 
surrounding space, a perfect sea of upturned faces, and many 
housetops for blocks around covered with great masses of 
people, and even the battlements of the Delhi fort a half 
mile away, black with humanity, and the open space, nearly 
a mile square, all filled with natives, until there was no vacant 
room — all this was to me a more impressive scene than the 
fireworks. At the close we hurried to the station, found our 
train, could not get in, as it was completely packed, and were 
left at midnight with no hotel to go to. Cold and tired, yet 
we could still muse upon the situation. 
At this time, with all our luggage, and every hotel full, our 



288 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

situation as the train departed for Lucknow was not a cheer- 
ful one. However, we saw a number of Europeans spread- 
ing out their blankets in the European waiting room of the 
station, and concluded there was room for two more, so 
rolled up in our blankets on the floor and were soon in a 
land of peaceful rest, sleeping as sound as two bugs in a nest. 

In the morning I again walked out on the streets of Delhi 
and, seeing a notice, "Public Library," walked in. There 
were not many books or papers, and only a part of those Eng- 
lish. I particularly noticed in a prominent place the monthly 
publication of the Theosophists of San Diego. Theosophy is 
simply the old Hindoo doctrine of transmigration of souls, 
and brought up in America clothed in a new name, surrounded 
by a certain subtle sophistry of reasoning, in order to catch 
people who are straining after new isms. 

Again I walked on the most famous street of Delhi, the 
old "Chandni Chonk." On each side of the street for over 
a mile are little shops and stores, just a few feet square, and 
the merchant sits aown on the floor in the center. The 
would-be native customers come, standing in the street, as 
the stores are about two feet higher, and purchase, attended 
with much bartering, as nearly all the Indian merchants ask 
much more than they expect to get. In our shopping we 
learned that to get anything we wished to purchase, reason- 
able or cheap, was to go to the Mohammedan stores early in 
the morning, as a Moslem will sell the first sales of the day 
very low, as he terms it, "for luck." 

This morning the street was filled with purchasers, and 
all the better stores had carriages and smart English carts, 
all attended with postillions in waiting for the wealthy Eng- 
lish ladies, as they admired and then sought to purchase some 
of the famous products of India. I never tired of walking 
along these crowded thoroughfares, so replete with color, 
pictures that in their setting an artist might covet. 

I saw two funeral processions, where the body was first 
covered with a red cloth, and lying on a stretcher was car- 
ried on the shoulders of a few men, and about a dozen more 



EGYPT AND INDIA. 289 

were walking behind — all singing a sort of mourning chant. 
I asked a merchant where they were going. "They are Hin- 
doos, going to burn them," was the laconic reply. 

Toward noon I returned to the station, as another train 
was leaving for Lucknow. It was more crowded than the 
one at midnight. All the classes of travel were piled in the 
cars like kernels of corn on a cob, and there were many dou- 
ble rows. We concluded to wait until 6 o'clock in the even- 
ing and then make a rush for the best we could get in the 
way of a seat. It began to look like a serious matter just to 
get away from Delhi. During the afternoon we looked at 
the different trains as they left. Never before were cars 
loaded with such a mass of struggling humanity. Among the 
natives they almost fought for places to stand on the train. 
Fully four hours before our train would leave, the people be- 
gan to gather on its platform in the station. With other 
Europeans we trieu to get some guaranty that the first and 
second-class cars would not be overcrowded, but could get 
none, therefore we concluded to try an intermediate car, only 
one being on each train. The passenger train coming from 
Lucknow was the one going out, so we piled our luggage up 
at one side and met the train coming in, jumping on before 
it stopped. Elmer crowded his way into the car, and I 
jumped off on the other side of the train and ran along with 
it. Coming to the intermediate car, there stood an Eurasian 
in one of the doors beckoning to me, and with much earn- 
estness said, "Come, I want you." I jumped in. Pointing 
to a sign on the door reading, "For Europeans only," I under- 
stood the situation. I ran out, found Elmer struggling with 
all his might to keep his place in the other end of the car, and 
hastily calling him, we both joined the Eurasian. Another 
American came along and we held the door. Scores of na- 
tives had intermediate tickets, expecting, as we did, that would 
be the easiest car to get in, but that sign staggered them. 
Otherwise they would have taken possession. Before the 
train started we let two Englishmen in and our compartment 
had only six as the train left, with room for eight, and the 



290 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

next one in the car contained in some way eighteen. I asked 
the Eurasian, "How did you manage to get this compartment 
reserved?" He said: "I have been waiting two days to get 
away from Delhi, not being able to get on a train, and I 
plucked this card on the door off from a car in the yard, and 
met the incoming train out at the edge of the city, and I 
put the card on the door." It was very fortunate for us, as 
I never saw such a tumult, nor any train so filled with peo- 
ple before; and we were riding off like kings, with plenty 
of room. 

The next morning just after sunrise we arrived in Luck- 
now, hired a gharry and drove to a hotel, where, as usual, 
we furnished our own bedding. We went to the English 
church in the morning where the service was well attended. 
At 6 o'clock Bishop Thoburn preached in the Methodist 
church, well filled with people. Most Methodist bishops 
preach long sermons. This one was only about fifteen min- 
utes long, and the text was about "The River of Life." There 
were several Indian people in the audience and the singing 
was good. This early time is used as a general church ser- 
vice because the dinner hour in India is about half-past seven 
in the evening. 

After dinner we attended a sort of an informal service of 
the American part of the North India Conference. It was 
a beautiful service, full of power, and their council together 
with the bishop presiding was wise and moderate in regard 
to their present condition of affairs. The next day towards 
noon we attended the full conference, where all the Indian 
members were present. They were debating the tobacco ques- 
tion, as some of the native preachers were using it. I was 
invited to address them, which I did, and an interpretr ren- 
dered it to the Indian members in their own language. It 
was wonderfully impressive to see how animated these fifty 
or sixty Indian preachers were, and hear them talk in their 
language. There were a few Eurasians among them. We 
also visited the Methodist college, and it seems to be doing 



EGYPT AND INDIA. 291 

a good work. They take good, needy boys, educate them, 
and then they pay the college back. 

We found Lucknow a large city of over 200,000 popula- 
tion, but much scattered. There are parks, many large trees, 
monkeys prancing about, and fine stores, besides the bazaars. 
I saw women turning stone mills by hand, same as they do 
in Palestine ; men splitting wood in the streets for their wood 
store, and not ten feet away merchants selling dry goods ; 
barbers shaving their customers in the streets sitting on the 
ground ; loose cattle walking around, and curious people 
everywhere, as in every Indian city. The two days we were 
in Lucknow were ideal days; just the kind of days that 
nature puts on a garb of rest, with not even a passing breeze 
to catch a trembling leaf, with not a cloud to dot the sky, 
or cause a shadow from above. Much more of interest I 
saw in Lucknow, yet I must hasten on. We concluded to ride 
back into the Presidency of Bombay again, and purchased 
tickets to Ahmednager, over twelve hundred miles away. 



IX. 

Jndia, Hhina and #apan. 



We boarded our train in the evening and by morning were 
passing through a gray rolling' country and could see groups 
of deer out in the fields, feeding on the growing grain as in 
places where they could irrigate, some bright, green looking 
fields of grain covered the ground. As we came into Agra 
we crossed a high iron bridge, spanning a wide sandy river 
bed, with a small body of water trickling along. Just across 
the river as the train swerved to one side was a large, pecu- 
liar looking fort, similar in construction to the one in Delhi, 
and its towers and battlements looked like the walls encircling 
the city of Jerusalem. Nothing else much except a gray col- 
orless landscape in sight, a brisk north wind blowing, catch- 
ing little dry wisps of grass and leaves and twirling them into 
little eddies by the roadside ; then a stronger sweep of wind 
would send them flying into the air in a whirling cloud of 
dust and sand. 

About a mile down the river, standing in bold outlines 
against the gray sky, amid bowers of green foliage, is the 
"Taj." Lord Roberts once said "It is worth a trip to India 
to see the Taj;' We came to Agra to ,see this wonder of 
wonders. Leaving our luggage in the station just beyond the 
large fort, and having all the afternoon, we decided to walk, 
yet the road leading around would cause us to walk about 
two. and one-half miles. 

The air was cool and bracing as the north wind was bring- 
ing to us fresh ozone from the snow-clad Himalayas in the 



INDIA, CHINA AND JAPAN. 293 

north, though out of sight. Just by this great red fortress of 
Agra, built about three hundred years ago, and large enough, 
as it was, to be both fort and palace for the king of India, 
our road led us, and into an avenue bordered by baboo trees 
(from which the gum Arabic of commerce is obtained) and 
also pepul trees. As we wended our way towards the "Taj," 
fitful gusts of wind caught us abreast as we pushed along; 
and the ever present natives went scurrying by like peacocks 
on the fly. Hump-backed cattle walked listlessly along nib- 
bling the falling leaves, even though dry and brown. The ca- 
pricious crow was cawing in the trees, or circling around pre- 
paring to alight on the ground. We were sauntering in In- 
dia's land to catch a glimpse of something grand. While 
walking briskly, I recalled the story, an Oriental one, tinged 
with romance and love : Shah Jehan, the grandson of Ak- 
bar the Great, the first Mogul Emperor of Hindustan, wooed 
and won a beautiful Persian lady by the name of Mumtaz- 
I-Mahal. After a few years and during the first year of his 
reign as Sultan of India, his wife died, and he vowed that he 
would build the finest tomb in the world. For seventeen years 
the work went on, with all the skill and wealth of India to 
draw from. We were about to see the work he wrought, by 
looking at the tomb of Taj Mahal. We approached a large 
doorway, with a succession of walls and towers on each side, 
and entered. Just a park of grass and trees and the wall 
enlarged as it encircled the same, gathering red sandstone 
buildings in its course, and capped with towers. This area 
was large — perhaps five acres. Passing part way across this 
enclosure we turned into another great arched doorway of red 
sandstone, and beyond, down several steps, out across a garden 
of beautiful trees and flowers, with twenty fountains and a 
clear stream of water, basins of gold fish, and velvety green 
grass between, was the tomb "Taj Mahal." Was it a mirage 
or was it a dream? Was it a fancy of some phantom beyond? 
Is it a mystic enchantment? To correctly describe it one needs 
the genius of the architect that planned this final great won- 
der of the world. Down at the end of a stone walk, then 



294 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

up some steps on a great white marble platform stands the 
Taj, four-square, with the corners rounded, as any square 
corner would mar its harmonies. In the center rises a full, 
round, white dome, and at each corner are four smaller domes, 
upheld by arches. Latticed screens of marble, little half hid- 
den recesses — half arch, half dome — and surmounted by small 
pinnacles, all towering aloft in graceful harmony. Was this 
all? No. Over all this work was sculpture, carving, inlaid 
frets and scrolls, twining vines and garlands of pearls, agate, 
cornelian and colored marble, until vine and interlacing 
stems, and flowers to blend, were as real as nature's growth. 
No paint or pigment on the whole, yet each color so perfect 
it enchanted my soul. Was it a dream to fade away, or some 
Arabian nights come to stay? Are those only whispers of 
color, or is it something that is real today? Magical and 
mythical it did seem until I saw its shadow from the sun's 
bright gleam. I then paced around its base below, to make 
sure it could not be an illusion. Would that I could tell you 
of its beauty, so charming and complete in every way. I 
would have to be a Homer and a Socrates, too, in order to 
fully paint this picture to you. There never was a tomb so 
fine, not even General Grant's on Riverside Drive. In match- 
less colors and wondrous taste, it stands unrivaled among all 
tombs of the past. Agate and Jasper with the stones of Jade, 
were used to festoon each garland with grace. Each flower 
is so perfect in color and kind, as to almost approach the sub- 
lime. "Nothing but stones" I hear you say. Yes, but real 
artists have toiled many days to bring each stone and gem in 
full sway, the whole presenting a beautiful picture of today. 
I was glad to see the tomb of "Taj Mahal," because it is 
more beautiful than gold. My soul was enraptured as I 
walked away, because there is beauty in the world of today. 

Before leaving the grounds I looked down in the Jumna 
river, as we were on the high banks overlooking the trick- 
ling river and its bed of sand. In full view were two groups 
of vultures picking away, as two Hindoos lay, partly sub- 
merged in the flow of the river below. All over India there 



*nr 




TAJ .MAHAL 
AGRA, INDIA 



INDIA CHINA AND JAPAN. 293 

is always fish, as a prominent dish, on each bill of fare. Know- 
ing that Central India is a long ways from any ocean waves, 
we suddenly lost our taste for fish and ate no more on India's 
shore. Passing out I admired the roses of many kinds and 
colors, looked at the poinsettias, the only ones I saw in India, 
and walked back, going by the fort again, looking grim and 
gray a^ the day was wearing away. 

I thought of the time when this king was in his prime, and 
built this fort, with its palace and court. He had a black 
marble throne erected on this wall above, and used to watch 
the tigers and buffaloes fight below, while his court jester 
stood behind, to make him merry as the fight went on. 

This was over three hundred years ago, when this king 
lived in splendor and barbarism, too, yet this quadrangle of 
land still lies beside the fort, where the king used to watch 
these beasts and call it sport. 

As we walked along with a pace full and strong the gloom 
of darkness was gathering, and I heard a song. Some men 
were approaching in a funeral procession, carrying a corpse 
aloft, covered with a red cloth; as they paced together, their 
6inging was peculiar, as it seemed to be a rhyme, without any 
time. What they intended to do I easily foreknew, as any 
fire burns much brighter when the day is waning away. We 
reached the station in time for an early supper, then gathered 
up our luggage and boarded our usual sleeper. 

As our train speeded away from Agra I thought a Briton 
would see India much different. He would never pass Cawn- 

re, without looking at the place where the massacre of Eng- 
lish people occurred in 1857, and he would wander about the 
stone heights and ledges at Delhi, with maps in his hand, as 
we saw parties of English people doing, and point with sword 
or cane to positions occupied as Delhi was retaken. We had 
looked on the historic places in Lucknow, gazed into a little 
enclosure where two thousand mutineers were slain, yet some- 
how our pulses did not beat any quicker, nor did we care to 
rend up all the details of the great mutiny of 1857. All Britons 
who belong to or are a part of the so-called "smart set," and 



296 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

they are very much in sight in all these Eastern lands, have 
very little regard for the average American. If an American 
drops into their ways, wearing a waist and long-tailed coat at 
each dinner of table d'hote, with an immaculate shirt front all 
studded with gems, and finger rings of diamonds true, sipping 
his tea or coffee arid toast as he lies in bed before the sun 
comes forth, breakfast at eleven, and tiffin at one, with an 
afternoon tea as the clock points to four, not forgetting to 
talk of English history and deeds of valor, and having plenty 
of time to play cards just for sport, "don't yer know," with 
games of polo when the weather is fine, then you are an Ameri- 
can true with all the regards of these British with you. 

Next rhorning, January 7, we were passing through a pecu- 
liar looking country. There are hills almost like small moun- 
tains, not in apparent ranges, but rising abruptly from these 
great plains, and some of their tops are clipped off square. In 
places there are many trees and most of them were in full 
leaf, yet out on the plains of India I saw none of the pine, 
cypress or cedar family of trees. Abundance of life every- 
where, parrots, pigeons, peacocks and birds that I knew not 
the names of; monkeys, gazelles, deer, and out in the jungle 
where brush, trees and tall grass grows, are the leopard and 
tiger, watching for their prey. Residents of India get into 
a habit of calling all the country not in cultivation a jungle, 
which is misleading, yet at times our train ran through wide 
areas of country that was real jungle. 

The roadbeds are ballasted with rock; the stations are fine, 
and there is no dust on these Indian railroads. Each large 
station has good dining rooms where European food is served, 
and at moderate rates. Something of interest to look at all 
the day long : stations full of people, much native travel, some 
of them dressed and some undressed, many women wearing 
rings in their ears, some in their nose, nearly all bracelets on 
their ankles and many of them wear rings on their toes, and 
not a few with more than one pair of bracelets on their arms, 
cheap and tawdry to our eyes, but perhaps looking different to 
them. In the first and second class cars (and all the eight 



INDIA, CHINA AND JAPAN. 297 

wheel cars are called "bogie") there is more room for toilet, 
shaving and luggage than in America or Europe. 

The next morning our train was in the Bombay Presi- 
dency, as it includes a large area of country. Here cotton is 
raised to some extent, where rains are sufficient in the mon- 
soon season. In no country does cotton have as long a staple 
as in America, therefore all cotton weavers have to obtain 
American cotton to weave fine fabrics. There had been some 
rain, yet not sufficient to start the grass, and the country 
looked dry, with scarcely anything growing. The moisture had 
brought many butterflies, and troops of them in colors gay 
were flitting along all day. An aimless, wandering butterfly, 
yet perhaps tomorrow it will die. True of men and creatures, 
too, in this changing world below. 

As I have written before, I missed the wild flowers— for 
thousands of miles and in many strange countries they had 
been my constant companions. I was lonely without them, a 
charm was gone from my life, as their upturned faces are 
always to me a source of pleasure and delight. "Only a 
glance" you may say, "that anyone can get from flowers on 
the way." Yes, yet a glance is worth more than a gold mine, 
if it is filled with love divine. 

The day passed by, as all days do, seeing many things, j-et I 
can only record a few. Again we turned cur cushioned seats 
into a sleeping couch. In the morning we were approaching 
Ahmednager, and but few trees dotted the landscape, quite 
different from the parts of India we had seen with many 
trees of different kinds. A range of small mountains ran 
circuitously along and the country looked d>-y. How the peo- 
ple of the many villages all lived, puzzled me, then I terrrem- 
bered that this was a portion of the great famine districts, 
and the people did not starve because there was nothing to 
eat, but because they had nothing to purchase food with. Just 
a little after seven o'clock in the morning our train arrived 
in Ahmednager. We hired a tonga and drove directly to the 
mission industrial works. As we rode along, something 
seemed to be out of joint. Little, hastily constructed, flimsy- 



298 A CALIFORN1AN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

looking huts and cheap native tents were strung along each 
side of the road. Store keepers were selling goods out of 
the cheapest, rudest tents — vegetables and bread wen; sold in 
the open air, intermingled with flies and dust. Out in the 
open fields were other tents, or groups of them, and every- 
where the people just seemed to be staying, not permanently 
living. Many carts loaded with cotton and drawn by oxen, 
all going toward some large gins, and hay, wood and baled 
cotton were being drawn in other carts here and there. A 
curious and at the same time anomalous condition of affairs. 
We rode up to the factory, over one mile from the station, 
dismissed our tonga, and noting that all seemed quiel, asked 
for the superintendent. He soon came and then for the first 
time we learned the true condition pi affairs. He said, "About 
fifty are dying each day in Ahmednager of the bubonic plague, 
out of a population of about twenty-five thousand. Same of 
my men have it and we are all being vaccinated." Talking 
still further and finding that the business we came on was 
not obtainable of him, we concluded to leave Ahmednager on 
the next train. On foot we started for the station, and saw 
the quarantine flag erected here and there as gingerly and 
tenderly we trod along — the air and dust seemed to be full 
of disease and death. Nobody knows just what the germ 
is, or how people take it. They are well today and frequently 
dead tomorrow. It is the same disease that depopulated Lon- 
don in 1665. It is worse in the cool weather of winter in 
India, and its history shows that in its first attack on a vil- 
lage or city, that it runs out in about two and one-half 
months. Then when it comes again the next or succeeding 
year, it is more fatal and lasts twice as long in running its 
course. The third time it comes is still worse, almost like a 
sweeping epidemic. One hundred thousand in the Punjab 
district alone died last year, and the disease is slowly but 
surely spreading all over India. Like the sleeping sickness 
in Africa (80,000 dying there, mostly in Uganda, within four 
years), it is spreading, creeping and growing in all direc- 
tions, even outside of India. It seems to be caught through 



INDIA, CHINA AND JAPAN. 290 

the skin, as Europeans and even natives who wear shots and 
pants seem to escape. In any place the rats get it and die 
first. 

With sighs of relief, shaking the dust off, we readied the 
station. No train out for ten hours. I sat down to meditate 
upon the "irrascible mutations of life." 

After ten solid hours of meditation a train came to take us 
away. It was Friday evening and 200 miles distant by chang- 
ing trains we could reach Dharangaon, a place where the Pe- 
niel Mission of Los Angeles has a station. We concluded to 
call on these people and take a sort of latitudinal look. As 
usual, we had our two sleeping couches on the train, which 
was on its way from Madras to Bombay. At Jalgoan we 
changed cars with a wait of about three hours, but there was 
a fine waiting room and when you have your own bed, as 
everybody does in the East, it is easy to "take it up and 
walk." 

About eight o'clock in the morning we alighted from the 
train in Dharangaon, a city of about 18,000 people. The city 
was there but no people (entirely empty) with scarcely a dog 
walking on the streets. This is a walled city and all the peo- 
ple were camping out, not for pleasure, but because they had 
all been turned out of their homes, and their old homes were 
all sealed up with a government seal. They were now living 
in almost "any old way," under trees, about the fields, in 
little shacks, or squatting down by the roadside. The plague 
was so bad in the walled city that the government officials 
came along and turned the people out, a very wise thing to 
do, as perhaps if this had not occurred there would have 
been none left to turn out. The plague was still claiming a 
dozen or so of its victims each day, yet we were getting ac- 
customed to this sort of thing, as people have to in the East, 
as they soon learn that it is unwise to be filled with trepida- 
tion and fear. 

We found these ladies of the Mission living in an old castle- 
looking home, and if located in England would certainly have 
been built by some armored knight of the middle ages. As we 



300 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

entered the gate of this enclosed compound (not far from the 
walled city) and paced up its walk to the entrance, I fully 
expected to be hailed by some grim looking sentinel, like sonte 
echo of the past. They have nearly thirty orphan girls, mostly 
small, some grown up, waifs from the famine, and one little 
boy among them. They are training the larger ones in ord«:r 
that they may go among their own people as Bible women. I 
heard them sing and testify with shining faces and flashing 
eyes, and it seemed that their minds were grasping the lining 
truth, as we are told that "God is no respecter of persons." 

It was a season of rest and repose, all of Saturday and Sun- 
day, too; In a neighboring government bungalow we spread 
out our beds between the two, not forgetting to look for the 
cobra, as we heard some tales that made us shiver and shake. 
This mission with trust and hope is laying the foundations 
of what they call a "'bungalow," and I saw several Indian? 
digging the well through rock and shale — a circular opening 
several feet in diameter, with water gathering in the bottom 
a good many feet in depth. I heard the government official 
isay to Miss Shearer, on Sunday, "One of the men working 
on your well yesterday died of the plague today." 

The remark caused no surprise, as it would if uttered in 
America. I have talked with missionaries in many separate 
parts of India. Nobody knows in America, except they come 
and see, of the work that missionaries do, and of the priva- 
tions they go through, yet to the true missionary (and I saw 
no others) each difficulty only presents an opportunity. The 
real cause and want of greater success in missions is in so- 
called "Christian lands." The man or woman in England or 
America that gives a few dimes to missions, and one hundred 
dollars to build and adorn some costly home church that never 
prays for a foreign mission, that breathes a sigh of relief 
when the missionary collection is raised, knows of and cares 
but little for missionary work. 

With the scanty funds with which missionaries are provided 
I think they are accomplishing real miracles. Then again, 
real men and women are wanted as well as money, that are 




NATIVE CARTS LOADED WITH COTTON 

DHARANQON, INDIA 



INDIA, CHINA AND JAPAN. 301 

"called by the Lord," as there are many, many millions of 
even India's 280,000,000 that have never heard about Jesus 
the Saviour, and never will under the present order of things. 
The Indian people are different from your idea of them. Sad- 
dled with notions of caste, almost entirely destitute of any 
sense of gratitude ; immorality and Mohammedanism running 
rampant in the land, unable to comprehend even if converted 
that anybody should do Christian work without pay, crafty 
and cunning on their level, and if you treat them too kindly 
they will respect you less, taking kindness for weakness. Could 
you expect them to be different? I do not think it wise to 
educate them into English or American ways and customs, as 
that only will increase their wants, and for missionary work 
is only a detriment to them. There is a hope that in the 
different training schools natives will go out equipped for the 
work, therefore if these lines greet anyone in California who 
is helping the Peniel work in Dharangaon, do not withdraw 
your support, as out of this little training school some 
"Amanda Smith" may sweep through hundreds of Indian 
villages with the power of the Holy Ghost and the Word 
until thousands may turn and "live." 

After dark Sunday evening we again boarded a railroad 
train, this time for a run almost all the way across India to 
Calcutta, the metropolis of India. We were glad to get on 
our train again as we traveled in India 4870 miles, being in 
the country twenty-one days, and only four nights did we stay 
in hotels or bungalows. The rattle and roar of the moving 
trains became music to my ears, and the novelty of being 
aroused from a deep sleep at the midnight hour by some doc- 
tor, who, for safety, would demand that he feel of my pulse 
to see if I had the plague was something one will not find in 
America. 

We had another long ride before us of three nights and a 
little over two days to reach Calcutta, next to the largest city 
in Asia. Our booking was by the Bengal and Nagpur R. R., 
the most direct route. We wanted to book via Benares and 
see the monkeys, as they are so plentiful, and the Hindoos will 



302 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

not have any killed. Only a few years ago they caught over 
one thousand in Benares, and putting them in sacks carried 
them off to other parts of India. A monkey is a peculiar 
animal, and I never tired in watching them caper about, and 
wild monkeys are much sleeker looking than any that Italian 
organ grinders lead around with a string in America. I re- 
member that when we were in Delhi looking at the great ele- 
phant parade (the grandest pageant in all the world) that a 
band of monkeys came leaping from one large tree top to 
another until they reached the side of the street where I stood, 
and as Lord Kitchener, Lord and Lady Curzon, and all the 
rest of the nobility were riding by, these monkeys were curled 
up in those tree-tops like squirrels, peeping down over and 
around the limbs; I presume they were trying to calculate (as 
they sat there entirely motionless) "how long it would take" 
by the process of evolution, before their descendants could 
Tide by an applauding multitude like those they saw below. 
At Jalgaon we changed trains, where we could then make up 
our beds as usual, and were swiftly whirled away toward the 
east. In our compartment was a Parsee, his wife, their little 
boy and an Indian servant. This family of Parsees were ele- 
gantly dressed, as they all are. The gentleman wore the Eu- 
ropean style of dress except the hat, in place of which they 
wear a tall, black, shining cap, slanting on one side to the 
(top, in which there is an opening where they carry a hand- 
kerchief. The lady had garments on similar to European 
dress, only instead of being cut close fitting, like a waist, the 
idress was folded over the shoulders in graceful folds, and 
very richly embroidered by hand. 

A range of small mountains were south of us toward the 
,east, and all day long there was the usual Indian life, full 
of color, charm and novelty. I was never tired of looking, 
except when too sleepy, at this kaliedoscope of Indian life and 
character, a strange picture with a mottled appearance. Again 
I noticed a feature of life, where, as I had seen before over 
very large areas of India, many women seem to make a busi- 
ness of gathering up the excrement of cattle, on the streets 



INDIA, CHINA AND JAPAN. 303 

and in the fields, and by the roadside, then in their door- 
yards, they take this excrement, mix in a little straw with 
water, and mold into cakes for fuel. I have seen in the 
cities, stores for selling this fuel, and cakes of it plastered on 
or near the front entrance for their advertisement, and to 
see women carrying great loads of it in baskets on their heads 
is a common sight. There are some good large tangerine 
oranges raised. I saw no good oranges of any other va- 
riety. 

At every station there are plenty of men waiting to carry 
your luggage, and if you carry it yourself you lose respect 
among the natives. It seems strange to hear men and women 
calling out "coolie" and the coolies come running to carry 
your baggage for a few pice or an anna or two — only a trifle. 
These Indian people seem to expect to be servants and I have 
seen even good Methodists going to church in India, with a 
servant walking along at a respectful distance in the rear, 
carrying some wrap or any other article for the "Sahibs." 
There is rice served and eaten in India, and the East, in Euro- 
pean and American homes more than in their home lands, but 
the cooks get all the broth, the very best part of the rice. 
These cooks say that the "Sahib," the name they call their 
masters, should have the rice come upon the table looking 
nice, so after it is cooked they put it in cold water, which 
separates all the kernels, then warm it up again to serve to the 
"Sahib," and they eat the broth. All rice is served with 
curry, many kinds of spices ground up together, with chicken, 
meat or vegetables, and about everything else at times, you 
can think of. 

The little trials of life are very great in India. When it 
rains in the monsoon season, the flying bugs are so thick 
you cannot sit by a lamp or light of any kind, and white ants 
will eat up your sugar and jam, and they will commence to eat 
up the house, and the cockroaches as large as mice (some of 
them), will eat up your clothes; cobras will live in and 
around the house, the servants will be slow and moderate, 
and the weather is so hot the "memsahib" has to let them have 



304 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

their own way. On the morning of the 30th we were pass- 
ing through a beautiful looking country in Central India. It 
was another ideal day, with a little haze, of ribbon-like streaks, 
ribbed against the sky enough to hold the sun's bright glare, 
and robe the earth with a soft mellow light; just that sort 
of day to charm and beautify each object seen, until all the 
world around imparted a reflection on each passing moment 
of sense and thought. I noticed many spider webs, woven on 
little clumps of grass, dry stalks, or any protruding object 
above the ground. We saw many fields of nice looking grow- 
ing grain, not large enough to yet throw up their stalks and 
heads, also fields of Egyptian corn. During the day some 
hills were a feature of the landscape, and the farther we 
traveled to the east, as the annual rainfall increases, the 
country looked more prosperous. Our Parsee friends were 
still in our compartment, and at every large station other 
richly dressed Parsees would meet and greet them, and hand 
in beautiful bouquets of flowers, which their servant would 
take and lay up on a shelf in the lavatory, a curious proceed- 
ing, uncared for and forgotten. Each important railroad 
■station was fairly embowered in a wealth of flowers, climbing 
roses and vines, and rare trees, the best collection, and at- 
tended with more care than any series of plots that I saw 
elsewhere in India. The most common flower is the terra 
cotta bougainvillea. Thus another day passed away, gone to' 
join those on before. 

The next morning we were in a still different country. 
Water standing in pools, thickets of bamboo, and many banana 
trees with fruit hanging on them, little villages everywhere 
swarming with people, cattle out on the meadows, and at 
times the fog was as impenetrable as it is sometimes on the 
■California coast. About ten o'clock our train came to How- 
rah; we alighted, hiring a gharry and driving over a bridge, 
•were in Calcutta, where in the native parts of the city the 
people are thicker than peas are in pods, streets so narrow 
that you have to elbow your way through — just people, until 
you wonder why they are all there, unless it is to count in a 




■J 

< 



— 

fa 



y. 



INDIA, CHINA AND JAPAN. 305 

census. We drove to the shipping offices, and learning that 
we could book to Hong Kong by a steamer departing in three 
days, we purchased our tickets, and having been invited by 
Dr. Robinson to tiffin at half past one, we arranged to leave 
our baggage there, and concluded to visit Darjeeling, three 
hundred and eighty miles north of Calcutta, and take our 
chances on the weather being clear, about seeing the tallest 
and biggest mountains in the world. It was only an idea, 
yet most everybody has ideas, and Mount Everest is bigger 
than any idea I know of, therefore after tiffin with Dr. Rob- 
inson and family, we again took a gharry, drove to the sta- 
tion, booked ourselves to Darjeeling, boarded a train in wait- 
ing and were soon in pursuit of a chance to see the tallest 
mountain in the world. 

We were pursuing a very forlorn hope, as Dr. Robinson told 
us. "On account of clouds and mist you may, and you may 
not see Mount Everest; it is only a chance." And we only 
had a few hours to stay in Darjeeling. All this time and 
trouble, too, just to see a mountain view, just to catch a 
passing glance at the tallest spot on our world's expanse. 
Elmer had his usual hope, as he said to me when our train 
started, "I think we will see this mountain top because we 
have such good luck." Cloudy and gray, with a dull color- 
less sky was the outlook above. We saw gardens with many 
trees and cotton and jute mills belching forth black smoke, 
as Calcutta has a good many jute mills, though not as many 
cotton mills as Bombay. 

Just after dark we commenced to unroll our bedding, when 
a gentleman in our compartment said : "We soon have to 
cross the Ganges in a steamer." About eight o'clock we came 
to the Ganges river, where a pretty little steamer was in 
waiting. As soon as the passengers were all on the steamer 
the dinner bell sounded, and while crossing the Ganges the 
waiters ran, the dishes flew, and a Parsee took in the rupees. 
I peered below into the swirling waters, but could see no alli- 
gators or crocodiles. The river is wide, taking about one-half 
hour to sail across, then all the passengers scrambled into an- 
other train. There were a good many English and some 



306 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

Americans. Then we retired with our bedding again, with 
only a hard seat to sleep on this time, scarcely as wide as our 
width across, yet we were contented, because it was the best 
we could get, sleeping so sound that we had no time to roll 
off. Early in the morning I awoke and not far away I could 
see the approaching Himalayas, only the lower part of them, 
as all of their tops were enveloped with clouds as black as any 
black cat, and out on the plains the mists were so gray that 
they obscured the sun, as that orb appeared for the day. 

At Siliguri Junction we alighted from our train, and just 
across the platform stood a little humpty dumpty train, with 
no sides except curtains, an awning top and only a few seats 
and chairs facing each other, in the smallest of coaches, and 
the track only two feet wide. We had fifty miles to travel on 
this little mountain railway, climbing four feet to the hundred 
up the grandest mountains in the world. We boarded the 
train, with no seats to spare, and began the ascent. For the 
first few miles the grade is easy, just passing along a roadway 
with bamboo thickets here and there, and some tea plantations, 
short, thick bushes, covered with dark green lea\ es and planted 
in rows like grape vines. On the roadside is also grass, in 
some places twenty feet high, and trees as large as forest trees, 
-with not a leaf on them, yet full of red blossoms, about as 
large as carnations, called the cotton tree — as beautiful a pic- 
ture as I ever saw — such large trees, with such brilliant flowers 
on them. 

Suddenly we began to climb; panting and puffing, the little 
toy train ran, zig-zag and across its own track, carving loops 
and curves, and at times it had to back up an incline to get 
any foothold before it could advance again. We saw trees oi 
wondrous size, some of them with orchids and vines creeping 

up their tops. Trees out of leaf, others in full leaf, and, best 
of all, such a profusion of wild flowers. 

Full of sweetness and display, 
Bright and graceful in their' way; 
Trim and modest as any maiden fair, 
Throwing bloom and beauty in the au*. 



INDIA, CHINA AND JAPAN. 307 

Would that I could describe this wondrous ride up the 
grandest mountains in the world. 

The gray mist of the plains by this time arose in great 
convolvular folds, dense and dark in their misty might, mak- 
ing us look like elfs in the night, all loaded on some fairy 
train, running to reach some place in space. As far as we 
could see, vines, trees and ferns covered the ground, a wilder- 
ness, a jungle full of nature's growth, unlike any forest I had 
ever seen. Now the great tulip tree, with bloom in a 
scarlet — mahogany, — now a creeper with flowers of white, 
now some bushes as large as trees — then the foliage is a 
sight to see — some choked to death by creepers grow, as 
poor and skinny as can be, then there are trees with leaves 
as large as any fan you ever saw, there are grasses, 
bamboo grass large and red, and single giant stalks of tufted 
reed. I never saw such a tangled growth, such a variety of 
plants and trees, and each one trying to keep its pace and 
outgrow its neighbor in the race. 

All this time the little train is twisting, circling and dodging 
along, now under a bank so steep and tall that you shudder 
for fear it may fall; then over in the abyss we would look, 
nothing but clouds and some tree tops, the rest of the abyss 
was of an unknown depth. This skein of a road kept un- 
reeling, continually on a rising incline, until I wondered 
where the end of the skein would be, if in the snow of the 
Himalayas, or on some cloud hanging from the sky. 

By and by the mist rose a little, the toy train had reached 
a higher level, the jungle is now gone, and the slopes are 
more open, with evergreen trees of a darker hue. A tree fern 
now makes its graceful bow, as high as a man, wearing a 
large bushy green crown, drooping gracefully down, a verit- 
able king among ferns, and always standing alone. The other 
ferns stand around, like the subjects of a king that is 
crowned. Up we glide as the minutes fly, until other patches 
of dark forest dot the mountain side. These trees seem to 
be in deep mourning, for they cannot hide the many bunches 
of brown dripping moss underneath their branches and on 



308 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

their sides. The engine gives another series of panting 
puffs, a long drawn out whistle, and we are at the station in 
Gnoom, the highest point this mountain train reaches. 

We looked aloft but no mountains could we see, only mist 
and clouds where the sky ought to be. The tall Himalayas 
were somewhere near, yet how could we see them until the 
sky became clear? Passing along the little street of Gnoom, 
with stores of all kinds in rooms about ten feet square, the 
little train ran down grade for five miles more, and we were 
in Darjeeling, the great summer resort of India, and many 
coming in the winter also, from the hotter parts of India, 
just to know how it seems to get cool, if for only a few days. 

We found a hotel to our liking, and as we told the proprietor 
how we came to Darjeeling to see the mountains, he shrugged 
his shoulders and replied: "It has been cloudy for several 
days, and perhaps if you stay several days you may get a 
chance to see them." I replied, "We must return to Calcutta 
on tomorrow noon's train." He answered, "Then there is only 
one chance; you have to go six miles from here, on top of 
Tiger hill to see Mount Everest, and you should be there be- 
fore sunrise." We concluded to take the chance, although 
other people had waited many days, and gone several times 
to Tiger hill. We had little hope of success. However, we 
hired a dandy (two of them) and were to be awakened at 
four o'clock in the morning. 

It was again fortunate that we had our bedding; as we 
retired in our hotel in Darjeeling we found only a bed and 
mattress for each of us. Before four o'clock in the morning 
some tea and toast was brought to our room, and as we were 
arranging our toilet, we sipped the tea, and ate the toast, 
shivering with cold, as streaks of moonlight and streaks of 
mistlight cast their reflections on the floor. We found eight 
coolies and two dandys waiting for us out in the roadway. 
We spread our bedding in them, stepped in, sat down, and 
muffling ourselves from the tip of our heads to our feet, to 
keep the bitter frosty cold out, we gave the signal for start- 
ing. A dandy is a wooden, box-looking affair, with a seat to 



INDIA, CHINA AND JAPAN. 309 

sit on, and two long handles, both fore and aft, looking like a 
sedan chair in China, only is not covered. My four coolies 
picked up my dandy and started, keeping up a strophe and 
antistrophe of grunts between those in front and those in 
the rear, with one of the four emitting an extra big giunt 
between their unison for time and step. We had six miles of 
climbing to do to reach the top of Tiger hill, changing about 
as we rode along, to continually face the rising incline. Be- 
fore a mile was paced this way three other dindys came 
from somewhere, all silently joining our proces.ion, except 
the grunts in strophe form. Some horses and their riders 
caught up and joined the throng just to see if tlv. Himalayas 
were in sight from Tir?er hill; as many of these would-be 
sightseers had repeatedly made this trip, only 1o see some 
clouds and mist. Our hearts and expectations were ebbing 
low, as the clouds were gathering until the moon failed to 
shine, and as we passed through the village of Gnoom, the 
clouds were as thick and dripping with mist as any fog that 
you ever saw. The pacing still kept on, with nolhing but the 
grunts in the way of song, until we reached the foot of Tiger 
hill, when my limbs wore so cramped for want of space, ana 
the cold and chill of the night was so great, that I ordered 
the coolies and their grunts to cease, bidding th'jm to deposit 
their dandy on the grc-und, thus enabling me to step out and 
look about. Daylight was approaching and I concluded to 
walk, starting off on a run to get warm. Hopes were still 
faint, as the clouds seemed large and dense, yet I pushed on 
and up with a determined step to get to the top of Tiger 
hill before sunrise. I heard a shout on ahead and ran to 
see the cause. Som<: people had reached the top and were 
looking to the north. Breathless and tired I ran up the last 
incline and was on the top of Tiger hill — 8000 feet in alti- 
tude. I saw the sun was just coming up and that the tops of 
the mountains were clear. 

Forty miles away is a noble range, once thought to be the 
highest in the world — 28,150 feet high — by the name of Kin- 
chin junga. A thrilling sight of snowy heights over five miles 



310 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

high. I then looked a little farther west and there was Mount 
Everest, with not a cloud on its top, yet it was 120 miles 
away. Our chance succeeded, and we could see the tallest 
mountains in all the world. 

Just six months ago at this very hour wc; were leaving our 
California home, with mountains nearly 12,000 feet in alti- 
tude near. I had often thought in my boyhood days that I 
would love to scj these Himalayas, and now I could see their 
tallest peak, measuring 29,002 feet — over five and one-half 
miles. My soul was electrified, and filled with thoughts al- 
most sublime. No mortal man ever clbnbed those dazzling 
snow-clad heights. Nobody but angels clad in white ever 
stood on those mountain tops — a good place to rest in their 
flight. My soul was all aglow, as each golden moment flew, 
I looked and loved the maker of those wonderful peaks above. 
Fittingly it seemed that these peaks should be robed in white, 
and beyond the reach of dust or heat, as within their folded 
robes is snow and ice that gathered and fell from the very 
first clouds that ever cast a shadow on those towering moun- 
tain tops. I can see trie picture of these mountains now, as 
I look within memory's pages, so wonderfully clear, and it 
seems to me that if those people who started to build the 
Tower of Babel had only traveled a little they would have 
selected Mount Everest as a preliminary foundation. 

I looked farther north and uaw a whole range of jagged, 
lofty peaks — scores of 'hem — all clad in white. As far as the 
sunrise in the east, and beyond Mount Everest in the west, 
and as far as we could see either north or south from our 
outlook on the top of Tiger hill, there was below us one 
vast volume of rolling, billowy clouds, resembling the ever- 
restless sea. Only twenty Piinutes after sunrise did this most 
remarkable view keep clear, then tens of, thousands of square 
miles of heavy clouds received some lifting force and rose in 
silent majesty, until the mountains and ourselves were 
wrapped in clouds as- dense as nature ever sifted out of her 
labratory. The ground, grass, trees and bushes all around 
were covered with hoar frof;t, nipping our toes and fingers, 



INDIA, CHINA AND JAPAN. 311 

until we were glad to turn away and seek some warmth in 
returning to Darjeelinfc. 

Mounting the daniy, I retjrned to Darjeelin'£, and was sur- 
piised to find it so ntat an I romantic looking, with so many 
good buildings and such an American air and appearance. 
Very steep are its .sloping hillsides and the hillmen who drive 
in their ox-carts from the country are the most Chinese look- 
ing people to India. Only about five miles to the north does 
British rule extend, therefore Darjeeling is a frontier town, 
and the best place to reach Central Asii, and one of the 
most interesting places in the world to catch a glimpse of 
how some of that other half of the world lives. Nature is 
piodigiously bountiful in plant, tree, vine, flower and in 
mountain scenery that eclipses the world in grandeur, magni- 
tude and beauty. 

We purchased somn things from Thibet, strolled through 
the bazaars, and taking again the toy train rode down the 
mountain, one of the most exhilarating railroad rides in the 
world. The clouds had risen to higher levels, revealing to us, 
as our train ran down its narrow track, views so enchanting, 
sirch sylvan bowers of trees and foliage, many tea planta- 
tions on the steepest hillsides, and again those large, leafless 
co'ton trees, with their red blossom:., looking like butterflies 
pinned up against the sky; rippling brooks, running streams, 
then suddenly transformed into leaping cascades. There 
wore canyons dark and deep, and many almost tropical plants, 
the whole with other features I have no time to speak of, 
forming a picture of such resplendent beauty that in order to 
understand you must come to India. 

We arrived in Calcutta about ten o'clock the next day, 
hired a gharry, did some trading and found our steamer. We 
kept our gharry to finish up all our business in India, and 
anived at the river's «dge in time for examination, and 
with a tremendous lot of luggage The doctor looked at 
Elmer and let him go, but as he seemed suspicious that I 
might have the plague, felt of my pulse. All the Asiatic pas- 



312 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

sengfrs were stripped, examined, and their slothes fumi 
gated. 

We soon learned that the steamer would not sail until early 
in the morning, and would take on some more cargo during 
the night, as it was a freight steamer with only room enough 
for ten first-class passengers. Yet sometimes it carried a 
thousand or more deck passengers. All the natives pay is 
their passage on the deck (furnishing their own food, or 
go without), costing only thirty-five rupees (about $11) to 
Hong Kong, while our fare cost us 275 rupees each, with a 
promise that if we did not go into quarantine at Penang, then 
the company would return to us twenty-five rupees each 
after we arrived at Hong Kong. 

Nearly all night the derricks were hoisting bales or cases 
of opium on board from barges, as the ship was anchored 
in the Hugh river. Twenty-two hundred cases of opium 
were thus taken on board, all of it in the night time, yet I 
hardly think it was intentional to load this, "the curse of 
China," on the ship under cover of darkness. Each case 
of this opium is worth in American gold nearly $500. Over 
500,000 acres of the richest land in India, mostly in Burmah, 
is used annually in growing the poppy. The Indian gov- 
ernment is behind the whole arrangement, dictating as to 
how much shall be grown, and at present the exports are 
only allowed to reach a total of 4000 cases each month. 
Forcing this opium on China, as England, through its In- 
dian government, has done for over fifty years, is the black- 
est and greatest crime of any age or century. England gets 
between 2,000,000 and 3,000,000 English pounds sterling in 
revenue out of this atrocious traffic each year. They think 
they need it to run the Indian government with. Unless 
England tries to remedy this great wrong and abolish it, her 
flag will trail in the dust, her pride will totter and fall, as 
I believe that even now hosts of avenging angels are gath- 
ering thicker than the stars to cut down' this proud nation, 
as the depth and misery of this great wrong is greater than 
anything that can be found in the annals of human slavery. 




NATIVES STRIPPING FOR PLAGUE INSPECTION 

CALCUTTA, INDIA 



INDIA, CHINA AND JAPAN. 313 

Early in the morning the steamer sailed with a large cargo 
of rice, jute bags, and over $1,000,000 worth of opium, but 
about ten miles down the river, as the tide commenced to 
ebb, it stopped, cast its anchors and awaited the return flow 
of the tide. 

Fleets of native boats kept passing up and down the river, 
all of them having a little bamboo house on them for the 
natives to crawl in as they wanted shelter and food. 

Many banana trees are growing on the land near the 
river — just slender stalks, as it seems to be their nature that 
each stalk, as it fruits, never lives to fruit again. 

In the afternoon we again sailed a few miles and cast an- 
chor as the darkness came on. 

The Hugh river is a treacherous one, and if ever any ship 
gets aground, the quicksands will not forego their grasp. 

The mosquitoes came to levy toll on everyone who failed 
to brush them away. As I retired, clouds soft as the wings 
of any dove, and without any gloom, were flying gently by, 
scattering garlands of sweetness from the sky, just like the 
tendrils of some growing vine reaching out for some place 
to climb. 

Early in the morning I heard the revolving screw once 
more — the ship had started on its way. I paced the deck 
in the morning light — the last day I had to look at India's 
land. The river widened, yet the pilot kept his post until 
we were several miles away from any land. Then the pilot 
withdrew, and the captain with his crew, after consulting 
their chart and compass, turned the prow of the ship just 
a little east of south. Thus we commenced another ocean trip 
of over 3000 miles in order to get to Hong Kong; yet the 
distance, as the birds fly, is only 1500 miles. Again we 
were in the torrid zone, as Calcutta, Hong Kong and Ha- 
vana are all on the same line of latitude, and just below the 
Tropic of Cancer. Not far northeast is the mouth of the 
Ganges river, like a sea in width, and for many miles inland 
there are very wide channels of water connecting it with the 
Hugh river. The waters of the Brahmaputra, one of the 



314 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

large rivers of the world, rising north of the Himalaya moun- 
tains, then passing through a portion of Thibet, with a branch 
leading to Lhassie, the sacred city of Thibet, then cutting its 
way through this great range of mountains, and like a sea 
in width and size it passes through Assam, a province in 
India, and unites with the Ganges not far from Calcutta, 
where there are thousands of square miles of low-lying, delta- 
like land, with great channels of water leading in all direc- 
tions, some of them like the wide expanses of a sea. The 
Hugh is the smallest of them all, until a few miles below 
Calcutta, where it connects with these great internal nav- 
igable waterways of India. 

Bengal (with Calcutta as its chief city) and Burmah are 
the most densely populated parts of India, with a population 
of over 75,000,000 people. 

In our travels in India we had seen some of the branches 
of the large Indus river, and on top of Tiger hill, near Dar- 
jeeling, we could see Nepal on the west, Bhutan on the east, 
and just beyond the high Himalayas that mysterious king- 
dom of Thibet. , 

There are several hill tribes all along the northern border 
of India, very savage (called head hunters), making it ex- 
tremely unsafe to enter even these independent states, as 
well as Thibet, further north. North of the central part of 
India is the Chinese Turkestan, and west is Afghanistan, 
where the king has just dismissed all his wives but four, 
and has proclaimed throughout the entire kingdom, accom- 
panying his proclamation by the beating of drums, that none 
of his subjects shall have more than four wives, and must 
dismiss the surplus, if any. 

As the ship sailed Sunday afternoon over the waters of 
the Bay of Bengal, I sat on the upper deck, underneath some 
canvas stretched for shade, musing, as I often love to do — 
a habit that sometimes I would love to break, as I have 
been guilty, I can sorrowfully remember, of being in church, 
and, with this habit of musing, let my wits go wool-gath- 
ering while the preacher was praying and then come too with 



INDIA, CHINA AND JAPAN. 315 

a sudden start, and sometimes feel a palpitating heart because 
I was so ashamed. "Creatures of habit" you may say. Yes, 
that is true of almost every one of us in a way, and some- 
times these chains get so strong that nobody but Jesus can 
right the wrong. While I was musing the bell rang for 
tiffin, and when the seats were filled there were just twelve 
sitting at this table in the dining saloon. You may be inter- 
ested to know who they were, therefore I will enumerate : 
Elmer sat at one end and the first mate at the other. A 
major-general from Siam and his aide by his side, an Aus- 
tralian just beyond, and a Baptist missionary minister from 
Assam, with myself, filled one side; then just opposite there 
were the chief engineer, one of the owners of the line, a 
bank clerk from Bombay, the captain and his wife, thus 
making the list complete, except there were two dogs look- 
ing on with wistful eyes and wagging tails, trying with all 
their might to tell of their wants as the waiters ran to fill 
the orders of the twelve. 

Tropical heat gathered about us as our steamer sailed 
across the Bay of Bengal. The only way we could keep cool 
was to dress lightly and catch a little breeze in some shady 
spot. During meal hours, in the dining saloon, by the use 
of a punkah (a long strip of canvas suspended from the 
ceiling pulled back and forth by a coolie) the air was cool 
and comfortable. Not much wind, and the surface of the 
sea was covered with little dimpling, rippling waves, and over 
all — the glare and heat of a tropical sun. For several days 
we saw no land, until we passed the Andaman islands, which 
are used by the Indian government as a convict colony. On 
Friday, January 23rd, our ship sailed into the harbor of 
Penang, yet only an open roadstead, the city being on an 
island. Having a whole day and, taking a sampan, we went 
on shore. Immense groves of tall cocoanut trees were every- 
where outside of the city streets, and large clusters of ripen- 
ing cocoanuts hanging on their tops. We hired some jin- 
rikishas and rode out to a park near some steep hills, where 
cascades of water came leaping down their sloping sides, 



316 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

ferns, orchids, mahogany trees and the tropical wealth of 
verdure and bloom covering the rich soil. I saw sensitive 
plants as large as ferns that would fold up all their leaves 
as soon as one leaf was touched, and many kinds of palm 
trees. There are whole streets of beautiful residences, with 
large yards full of trees and flowers, and many of them 
are owned and occupied by Chinamen. Hundreds of jin- 
rikishas flew along drawn by coolies clad in scanty cotton 
blouses and the shortest pants. Style, wealth and display, 
some of it on oriental lines, and some European. Penang 
is only 300 miles north of the equator, where Jack Frost 
never reigns, therefore there is a wealth of verdure unseen 
in more northern climes. As our steamer sailed away from 
Penang the open roadway was dotted with sampans and 
steamers, the royal plump tops of the cocoanut palms were 
waving in the tropical breeze, and as it was near sunset, the 
nearby mountain tops on the island of Penang were casting 
ever-lengthening purple shadows over their green wooded 
slopes, and over on the Malay peninsula some far-away 
mountain ranges were surmounted by large thunderstorm 
types of clouds, now lying in brilliant folds against the sky, 
now all aglow with the lightning's lurid glare, now dotted in 
golden light and over all — .these dreamy, languid, tropical 
skies, where each beat of nature's pulse is full of inspiration 
and poetry. We were sailing through the Malacca Straits, 
another great ocean gateway used by the ships of all na- 
tions. On Friday, January 23rd, we entered the port of 
Singapore, only about fifty miles north of the equator. Just 
a narrow entrance, then turning to the east we are at the ex- 
treme southern part of Asia. Only by courtesy could we call 
the time of year midwinter, as I never saw such humid, torrid 
heat before. Every afternoon of our three days' stay in 
Singapore heavy showers gathered and fell. It rains nearly 
every day in the year in Singapore. The city has a popula- 
tion almost equal to San Francisco. Every nation on the 
globe has representatives there. Most Of the business is done 
by Chinamen, who are real money-makers, wherever they can 




OX-CART 

YOKOHAMA 



INDIA, CHINA AND JAPAN. 317 

find a stable government. The many wharves, covered with 
large warehouses, present an animated appearance, with 
several large steamers loading and unloading products to 
and from, every country in the world. Europeans and Amer- 
icans who reside there are very pallid in their countenances, 
as this extreme heat is enervating. With the native Ma- 
lays they bask in the sun. Clothing does not bother them 
much; any place at night is warm and comfortable enough 
to sleep in, and there is fruit and nuts to eat just for the 
gathering, a veritable lazy child of the tropics. The black 
pepper of commerce is grown in this vicinity. Truly we were 
glad when our ship sailed out of these straits into the China 
sea toward Hong Kong, where we found a brisk northeast 
monsoon wind blowing a cooling breeze from the broad 
Pacific. Up the length of the China sea we sailed day 
after day, out of sight of any land, each day getting shorter 
and cooler, until on the morning of February 4th we en- 
tered Hong Kong harbor, a port with no custom house or 
custom dues collected in any manner. The only revenue 
that the port collects is that each ship of any kind pay one 
cent on each ton of its tonnage on arrival. We saw many 
steamers, some of them war vessels, as we entered the 
harbor, while on the shores, up on hills, were guns and 
fortifications, with the British flag flying over them. En- 
gaging a sampan, we went ashore. We were surprised to 
see such a bustling, busy city, four-story buildings, dry docks, 
machine shops, Chinese merchants counting bushels of silver 
dollars in rooms on the streets, coolies, rickashaws and Chi- 
nese people everywhere. 

High hills or mountains overlook the city, there being only 
room for two or three streets that can be used for business. 
We found a vessel, the Tam-Sui, getting ready to sail to 
Shanghai, and, booking our passage, we boarded this vessel 
the same afternoon of our arrival — an English vessel with a 
Chinese sailing crew. In all there were only five first-class 
passengers, including ourselves. After boarding the Tam- 
Sui the captain concluded not to sail until morning. Nearly 



318 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

all his life this captain had sailed up and down the Chinese 
coast. We missed seeing the old city of Canton, which is 
about ninety miles inland from Hong Kong, and probably 
the largest city in China. The next commercial port north 
of Hong Kong about ninety miles is Swatow, where the 
orange growing center of China is located, about on the 
Tropic of Cancer. The Chinese oranges are very sweet, 
more so than any that Florida grows. Our ship sailed up 
the coast of China on a near-the-coast route, where we could 
see mountain ranges, rocks and islands, and many villages. 
One day while in the captain's office he said: "Do you see 
this narrow channel of water between yonder island and the 
main land. On this very spot twelve years ago my ship was 
captured by pirates, some of the crew killed and $40,000 in 
silver taken." Thus the days passed, as the captain told us 
of his many adventures, and told us of his travels in China. 
As we passed any large city, or the mouth of some river, we 
saw hundreds of fishing junks, all looking alike, with a large 
square sail hoisted, either going out to sea or returning, all 
trying to catch some fish to sell to the many millions of Chi- 
nese people. The weather was raw and cold, as the same 
latitude of California on the Chinese coast is much colder 
in winter and warmer in summer. All the way up the Chi- 
nese coast the dry, hard, northeast winds continued. We were 
sailing along the coast of a country that has the oldest his- 
tory of any in the world, and the largest population — a coun- 
try where millions of people have nothing to eat in the 
morning, until they can earn it, and millions of them go to 
bed hungry. The inevitable must come, as either China 
will be divided among the "powers" or will, like Japan, shake 
off the traditions and customs of the past. Almost every 
day we saw some large steamers farther out on the Pacific 
passing up and down the coast. With much interest we 
began to sail up a river, and ninety miles inland we would 
come to Shanghai. 

We saw much of Chinese life, little farms and little fields, 
with only a few trees, and most of them leafless ; the cheapest 



INDIA, CHINA AND JAPAN. 319 

of houses, and in many of the fields we could see coffins 
covered with straw, as it is a custom in Cnma to keep 
their dead in a yard, or out in a field, two or three years be- 
fore burial. They fill the coffins partly full of unslacked lime, 
placing a pad on the lime, then the body covered with a red 
cloth, another pad, and all the chinks are filled with cotton. 
Red with the Chinese is the same as white in America. 

The river became narrow, and is not safe for passage ex- 
cept at high tide, and all the large steamers anchor several 
miles below the city. Up we sailed until the turn of the tide 
compelled the captain to anchor. Hiring a sampan, we went 
ashore and, taking a jinrickisha, we were soon on the Bund, 
the principal street, facing the river, in Shanghai. All the 
rest of the streets seem to be called "roads," with some Chi- 
nese name prefixed. Each foreign government has its own 
postoffice, and many turbaned Mohammedans from India are 
employed as watchmen at the gates of the manufacturing 
plants. 

What a strange medley of people on the streets. Now a 
sedan chair with curtains drawn ; now richly dressed China- 
men in brocaded silk, fur lined ; and Chinese women in 
handsome head dresses, waists and trousers, all richly em- 
broidered ; licensed wheelbarrows, coolies — everybody in the 
narrow streets jostling along, the old and the new all curi- 
ously intermingled together. We found a German steamer 
sailing that evening for Japan, booked our passage and only 
had time to catch our luggage off from our incoming steamer 
and place it on the outgoing tender, as the large German 
steamer was anchored several miles down the river. For 
many weeks we had no mail from home, and with large 
bundles of it obtained in Shanghai, as our steamer sailed 
away for Japan, not until the small hours of the night did 
I seek repose. 

The next morning I could see no land, as our steamer's 
swiftly revolving screws were pushing us over the Pacific 
toward Japan. This North German Lloyd line of steamen 
is very fine. The cuisine is excellent and each steamer makes 



320 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

three trips each year from North Germany to Yokohama and 
return. The second day in the morning we were near the 
pine-clad mountains and hills of Japan, and soon entered 
the harbor of Nagasaki. Three Russian war vessels lay near 
the entrance of the harbor, and the German band on our 
steamer saluted them with music, soon bringing response 
from the Russian bands. An American transport with sol- 
diers on board was in the harbor. 

All steamers coal here, making the port a lively one. A 
driving rainstorm set in, yet the city looked so picturesque, 
with life and activity in abundance on both water and land, 
that we went ashore after our quarantine inspection by the 
Japanese officials. Quaint Japan ! So full of surprises at 
every turn; its people so courteous and respectful; many of 
them well dressed, enterprising, affable; the best country 
in all the world for an American to take a holiday in. 

Nagasaki is the most picturesque harbor I have seen in any 
counftry, excepting Sitka, with its ninety-six islands, in 
Alaska. The little Japanese homes and stores are neat in 
appearance, the villas of the wealthy on the mountain sides, 
the varieties of tree ferns and hardy plants covering hill, 
slope and mountain, being unsurpassed in any country. At 
dusk our steamer sailed away, and as I looked back I saw 
the great searchlights of the men-of-war lighting up the green, 
terraced, wooded mountain slopes; the sea of shipping looked 
like trees with golden lights on mast and spar. The harbor 
lights were dazzling in the air, the stores were twinkling 
with lights, and on each rippling wave in our steamer's wake 
were the reflections of many of these lights, dancing like dia- 
monds in sparkling array, rivaling the stars as they twinkle 
in space. 

The next morning we were sailing on the noted inland 
sea of Japan, in some places narrow like a river, then again 
a broad expanse of sea. There are many villages on the 
shores, mountain sides terraced to the top, the ever present 
evergreen trees, islands and hills glistening with fortifica- 



INDIA, CHINA AND JAPAN. 321 

tions and guns, and in the distance mountains capped with 
snow. A clear, bright, beautiful day, with an Arctic touch 
of winter in the air, and all day long charming bays dotted 
with sailboats, quiet, peaceful shores, terraced hills and tem- 
ples near, and sylvan wooded nooks were passing and glid- 
ing by, with unending charm and beauty. 

Each village has a sea wall, a fleet of boats, and either 
or both castle or temple peeping out from some wooded 
slope, or rising above the village roofs. The next morning 
we came to anchor in the harbor of Kobe, at the eastern 
entrance of the inland sea, a city of much export trade, as 
it is the seaport of the large cities of Osaka and Kioto, and 
one of the great centers of the tea trade of Japan. Having 
all day, we went ashore and boarded a railway train for 
Osaka, about twenty miles distant. Nearly all the people 
wear wooden shoes, and the clattering feet on the stone 
pavements of the railway stations is almost deafening. Like 
all oriental countries, the travel on the trains is heavy, and 
most of the cars had one long seat on each side, facing the 
center, like a street car. Many of the Japanese men sat with 
their feet curled up under them on the seat, and no partic- 
ular car seemed to be reserved for ladies. 

We saw orange trees, hardy looking ones, gardens full of 
the largest radishes I ever saw, stone retaining walls to hold 
sloping hill sides, oxen hitched to carts, tea plantations and 
plum trees just beginning to blossom, a tree that poets love 
to sit under in Japan. There seemed to be no rules against 
smoking, as men and women would take from their clothes 
or from a small satchel something resembling a pipe, put in 
the smallest amount of tobacco, light a match, and one long 
whiff, with an abundance of smoke, was all they took, knock- 
ing the ashes out of their pipes on the toe of their wooden 
shoe, put up the pipe, then in a few minutes repeat the same 
process. 

At each station many passengers came on or alighted, 
in truly Japanese costumes. We found Osaka a large manu- 
facturing center. Hiring jinrickishas, we rode for miles 



322 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

in this city, amused and interested at every step. I entered 
one of the largest stores. No one is allowed to enter until 
his shoes are removed, and attendants in a little entrance 
at the front are ready with their slippers. Unfortunately 
the attendant could find no slippers large enough for me, 
therefore I walked in and about without them. There were 
scores of clerks, men and women, and it was so cold that 
all the clerks not busy were hovering over pots of burning 
charcoal. 

I did some trading, finding only one clerk that could talk 
English. Either being slipperless or owing to my droll ways, 
as I was trading the clerks laughed a good deal, and at the 
front of the store out in the street was a row of men and 
boys, with their faces close to the glass windows, looking in, 
with as much earnestness as a small boy will look at a circus 
parade. This store had a magnificent assortment of woolen 
and silk goods, all of Japanese make and wonderfully at- 
tractive. I shivered with the cold, and, like a stork, I had 
to balance myself on one foot to keep the other one warm, 
as I would warm my hands over the charcoal fire. Japan- 
ese never seem to think of warming anything but their hands. 

As we rode back to Kobe on the railway, from the large 
city of Osaka, we saw hundreds of sailboats on the ocean, 
as much of Japan's internal commerce is done by sail in- 
stead of steam. The little homes are much better looking 
than the tumble-down ones among the poor of our American 
cities. Our steamer sailed that evening, and the next morn- 
ing at sunrise we were entering the harbor at Yokohama, 
while snow-capped Fujiyama, with its top shorn off square, 
a matchless mountain of unrivaled beauty, shone forth as the 
rising sun revealed to us its mantle of white shaded to a 
tinge of gold. The air was frosty and cold, as we stepped 
on a wharf, and taking our luggage to the custom house, we 
placed it in bond. Otherwise, except personal articles, much 
of it would have been dutiable, 
line of steamers, we booked for Vancouver on the Empress 

Wending our way to the office of the Canadian Pacific's 




TAKING A JINRICKISHA R1DK 

PAN AM, 



INDIA, CHINA AND JAPAN. 323 

of India. Four days intervened in which we could see a 
little more of picturesque Japan. Our hox and bundle of 
goods, shipped on a Japanese freight steamer from Port 
Said, had just arrived, being two months in transit. We 
wandered many times over many streets, always interested, 
looking at these toy people and their toy houses and stores. 
You all see in America pretty Japanese ladies pictured on 
fans, yet the living Japanese women are graceful, handsome, 
and as they amble along on their wooden shoes or straw 
sandals, are usually bare-headed. There is a poetry of mo- 
tion, an aesthetic charm in their appearance, that can never 
be produced in any picture. The poorest woman dressed in 
a simple cotton gown, if only a kimona, is as graceful and 
picturesque as the rich, dressed in silks. 

One day we boarded a railway train for Tokio, the larg- 
est city in Asia, eighteen miles distant Many cars were filled 
with people. We passed rice fields ready for inundation, 
many plum trees in blossom, and striking advertising signs 
in the fields, neater than any I ever saw in America. 

Our first ride was to Shiba — in a jinrickisha — a suburb of 
Tokio, where we saw some celebrated Shogun temples. Sur- 
rounded by old pine trees — crooked, gnarled and looking to 
be centuries old, with many ravens cawing in them — are the 
temples. Like all religious temples in all heathen lands, we 
were not allowed to enter without replacing our shoes with 
slippers, and the funny part of it was that the attendant 
could only find one slipper large enough for me. Therefore 
on the other foot he buckled two slippers, facing both fore 
and aft, presenting a droll, grotesque appearance. Not much 
to see in the succession of small temples, except lacquer work 
in red and gold, and panels of carved wood in color and gild- 
ing. Out and up moss-covered steps and through dragon- 
guarded gateways we came to a hexagonal temple, where a 
Shogun is buried in a gold laquer cylinder, one of the best 
works of art in Japan. Passing from these mortuary tem- 
ples, through groves of giant trees, we came to where heathen 



324 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

worship was in progress, in all the superstition and pomp of 
Buddhism. 

In the passage ways between the temples are hundreds of 
old moss-colored, queer looking tombs, all alike, and the top 
of each one is fitted to use as a stone lamp. From the tem- 
ples we passed by the Emperor's palace and grounds, sur- 
rounded by a high moss-covered wall _ and a moat ; on and 
through the city to the museum, where we wandered for 
hours, in (aside from Biblical interest) one of the most 
interesting museums in the world. Time and space will 
not permit any effort to delineate, yet I must mention that 
we saw some of the famous Tosa chickens where ordinary 
sized roosters have tails twelve feet long, and where they 
raise them at Kioto they keep them in tall bamboo cages, 
not letting them out, except they wrap their tails up in paper. 

We saw all kinds of helmets and armor, carriages that the 
rulers of Japan used to ride in, drawn by hand. Better than 
any book of history was the record here shown by change 
from old to new. Many works of art, almost priceless in 
value. We wandered on the streets of Tokio, purchasing 
curious things until there was a gaping hole in our pocket 
books, as everything is so clever and cheap in Japan that one 
cannot resist the temptation to purchase. Unlike the Indian 
and Mohammedan traders, most of the Japanese do not ask 
more than their taking price, refusing to barter if you offer to. 

Tokio has large, modern war and naval buildings, and 
all of its public buildings are a credit to any country. 

Towards evening we rode back to Yokohama, looking at 
the people, their little houses — most of them have no glass 
windows and no doors as in America, just sliding ones. 
We wanted to stay many days more in Japan among its 
chattering, playful, child-like people, and reluctantly boarded 
the Empress of India to sail for America. 

The passenger list was light, with several returning mis- 
sionaries and among them an Episcopal clergyman with a 
Chinese wife and several Eurasian children. He belonged 
to the "four hundred" of New York, and frequently smoked 



INDIA, CHINA AND JAPAN. 325 

a pipe nearly two feet long. For eleven days we rolled along 
over the Pacific, passing to the north, about 200 miles south 
of the Aleutian Islands, without sighting any ship, sailing 
4200 miles, a long, lonely voyage. It was a beautiful after- 
noon when we sailed out of the harbor of Yokohama, by 
large forts at the entrance, with many cannon bristling in 
the sunlight, and I sat on deck watching the ever-receding 
shores, the sacred snow-capped mountain of Fujiyama, and 
occasionally looking askance at my fellow passengers, won- 
dering who among them I would visit with most, as always 
on shipboard there are some that attract and others that 
repel. Not any land would we see until we approached Van- 
couver Island, in British Columbia. The distant shores grew 
dim, the northeast wind our ship was sailing against began 
to whistle across the deck, the sailors battened down the 
hatches, and each loose line or rope was carefully coiled 
away; thus the fifty-fifth trip of this ship across the Pacific 
began. A floating home, as day and night the twin screws 
propelled this sturdy ship. The edges of distance between 
the passengers melted away, each kind finding their counter- 
part. As their thoughts were interchanged, therefore, each 
one knew whom to see when any hour became long and 
drear. There is a flow of soul when kindred spirits meet, a 
lifting up in one's place, making each one stronger for the 
race. 

Thus the days passed away, now a storm of wind and 
rain, then a blow that made huge billows roll, for many 
miles a weary waste of water wild. One day, on Ash 
Wednesday, we crossed the 180th line of longitude, and the 
captain said we must have two Ash Wednesdays, a curious 
decree.for it made this year one day longer to me, and none 
of you can claim the same. Eight days in one week and no 
mistake, as the sun did rise and set each day of the eight. 
Were I rich and philanthropic, I would hire many ships and 
gather up all the seventh day people in the world and give 
them a free ride around the globe, just to see what they 



326 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

would do with their creed when they found eight real days 
in one week. 

In crossing the Pacific ocean so far to the north we found 
each day very chilly and cold, requiring a very brisk pace to 
keep warm, even if wrapped in winter garb, as we walked 
the deck for exercise. It was the latter part of February 
and the change was so great from the equatorial warmth at 
Singapore that it seemed to be another world where tropical 
heat was unknown. 

Such times, when one is shut off from the busy world and 
all its doings and daily news, is a grand time for retrospec- 
tion. Each visit or talk with any other passenger was usually 
of the past; a summing up of results, a period in one's his- 
tory, a pause to profit by, a rest from monotonous care, a 
jubilee, so to speak, where thought and reason had its sway, 
instead of irksome toil and care each passing day. 

Each Sunday the captain had services according to the 
Church of England's form in the dining saloon, and one 
peculiarity of this service, like all the others of this church 
the world over, is the rapid way of reading or repeating 
the established form of ritual. 

With much interest, one clear, cool morning in March, 
we saw in the distance some pine-clad mountains, evergreen 
in appearance, with all the taller peaks robed in snow — the 
outlines of Vancouver Island. 

Reaching the mouth of the Straits of Juan de Fuca, our 
steamer glided up the channel, about as wide as a large river, 
against a heavy wind. The Olympia mountains and Mount 
Baker, with not a cloud to hide their tops, were in sight. As 
we neared Victoria, the doctors of the quarantine station 
and a pilot boarded the steamer. All the crew and passen- 
gers were examined before reaching Victoria. At this port 
many Chinamen from the steerage landed, and as we saw 
American-looking horses and wagons for the first time in 
months, we did as you would have done — kept looking at 
them. The ship sailed that evening for Vancouver. The 
next morning our trunks, Japanese koras and satchels, were 



INDIA, CHINA AND JAPAN. 327 

bonded through by the British custom officials to Sumas, our 
port of entry, fifty-two miles south of Vancouver. Coming 
on the Vancouver line of steamers entitled us to either 
steamer or rail service to San Francisco, without any charge 
from Vancouver. We asked for rail service, asking that 
our luggage might be checked to Sacramento, and the funny 
part of it was, the man who did the checking did not know 
where Sacramento was situated. As we rode away from 
Vancouver, the city seemed to have an air of prosperity. 
For over thirty miles our train ran over the main line of 
the Canadian Pacific railroad, then south on the Interna- 
tional to Sumas, where Uncle Sam's officials were ready 
to receive us. Everybody on the train after an hour's de- 
tention and inspection was passed along with their baggage, 
except ourselves. We presented a list of goods we thought 
dutiable, and the custom house official adjusted his glasses 
and said : "There is such a quantity of baggage belonging 
to you that I must keep it ot look over, as I cannot detain 
the train long enough." We stayed with the baggage. In 
the afternoon he looked over our list, looked in the trunks 
and koras, and concluded that the damage to the rest of 
Uncle Sam's subjects would amount to about ioo gold dol- 
lars, which we cheerfully paid. I was amused to hear Elmer 
say, as we sat at the dining table in the hotel, where there 
was plenty of crisp biscuit, fresh milk and apple pies, "This 
seems like home." Next morning I arose early, and in the 
gathering light I walked out and upon a hill on the western 
edge of the village and found an iron post with its base 
planted in the ground. On one side of it read "Treaty of 
Washington;" on another side it read "June 15, 1846." As 
the sun was rising I stood just west of this post, astride of 
the 49th parallel of latitude, with one foot in British Colum- 
bia and the other foot in the United States, and if the world 
was not round and if my sight were keen enough, I could 
have looked along this parallel of latitude and boundary line 
to the Lake of the Woods in Minnesota. I did see many miles 
across a valley over hills and mountain tops, as wherever the 



328 A CALIFORNIAN CIRCLING THE GLOBE. 

timber stood there was a cleared space of about forty feet 
wide. After sunrise, and getting tired of balancing the two 
countries, as Jack Frost was trying to nip both toes and 
fingers, and in order to get warm, I briskly ran from one 
country to the other, and vice versa, with as much enthusi- 
asm as any boy ever had. Towards noon as the train for 
Seattle came in from Vancouver, we were very careful not to 
carry any of our luggage, as we boarded the train across 
the line, and were soon whisking along by lumber and shingle 
mills, through some of the finest forests in the world, pas- 
tures and meadows full of stubs and stumps, salmon berries 
peeping at us, and rural life everywhere. I will forego any 
detailed description of our journey by rail down these Pa- 
cific coast states, only to jot down a few surprises. Every 
village and city we came to I asked myself, "where are the 
people?" For months, having been accustomed to the dense 
population of Oriental countries, I was surprised at the con- 
trast. I also noticed that all the ladies' hats had grown 
remarkably large in my nearly eight months of absence. I 
again noticed that almost every lady was either buying, or 
wanting to purchase, strings of beads of various values, to 
wear around their necks, a proceeding not much behind 
their heathen sisters in India or Egypt. /\s our train ambled 
into Portland I heard a man from Kansas, his pants tucked 
in his boot-tops, and carrying a Rip Van Winkle cast of 
countenance, say, "Ef there ever was a paradise on this sin- 
cursed earth, this is one," referring to the Willamette Valley. 
I quietly wondered if he had ever heard of Southern Cali- 
fornia. 

After passing over snow-clad mountains, our train ran 
the entire length of the great Sacramento valley, through 
leafless almond orchards, full of white bloom, like snow- 
flakes in the air, and by the side of immense growing grain 
fields, we came to Davisville, thirteen miles from Sacra- 
mento, and at this little hamlet our complete circuit of the 
world was a finished trip, touching the same place we trav- 
eled through on the second day of our journey. We had 



INDIA, CHINA AND JAPAN. 329 

traveled 38,600 miles, 21,000 on land and 17,600 on eleven 
different steamers, sailing under four different flags. Our 
entire time on shipboard was eighty days, and neither of 
us were seasick. Our baggage had been examined in eighteen 
different custom houses. We had stayed in forty different 
hotels, at variance in many wonderful ways. We had changed 
money into the money of fourteen different countries. We 
had seen and entered four of the five largest churches in the 
world and the oldest Christian church. We had seen their 
ruins and been on the sites of six of the seven ancient won- 
ders of the world. We saw the last cornerstone laid of the 
largest dam in the world at Assouan. We saw the tallest 
mountain in the world — Mount Everest in the Himalayas. 
We saw and traveled through the largest city of Europe, 
Asia, Africa and America. We saw the largest city in the 
world below sea level. Our feet trod upon the lowest place 
in the world below the level of the sea. We were in the 
oldest city and sailed in and out of the oldest seaport. We 
were in quarantine under guard three times, and had rocks 
hurled after us by cursing Arabs. We saw the grandest ele- 
phant parade, where 220 elephants were parading along with 
a goodly portion of England's and all of India's royalty and 
their equippage of diamonds, jewels and costly trappings — 
worth many millions of dollars — the greatest parade in the 
history of the world. We could enumerate temples, tomb? 
and mighty ruins of once mighty cities that we visited. The 
trip was a success in every way and I have something to 
think of, and whenever I read of the countries we visited 
there comes a remembrance to me of what we saw and heard 
in those countries. I saw no other country anywhere su- 
perior to our Sunny Southern California home. 

Home! How much that implies; no other haven, except 
heaven above, in all the universe, can compare with home, 
and it is what we make it. 



MAY 18 1904 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



021 648 880 5 



